Distanced Hurricane
by Wandering Gamer
Summary: Not too long ago, a powerful storm made a home in my untamed heart... There’s still a lot I don’t get, but I never want these dreams to go away! Everyone, I’ll protect your dreams so we can march towards tomorrow, together!
1. Chapter 0a

**Disclaimer-** I do not own Pokemon or anything else.

--

Rain pours heavily in an urban world of black and white. The only being bearing proof of life's beauty: A woman with short curly brown hair wearing a violet autumn dress holds onto a beautiful yet large golden ring with odd markings in its center as she backs into a corner due to the angry mob surrounding her.

"Enchantress! How much longer will we suffer from you?" a male voice roars.

"Do you think you're the only one who knows the pain of loss? You're so selfish it disgusts me to the very core…" a female voice adds.

"Our home- No, our world has no need for beings like you trying to shift it to your twisted desires." An elderly voice growls.

The mob closes in, leaving the woman to grip the ring tightly as she gives a cry for help in any form to arrive. As if reacting to her feelings, the ring resonates lightly until a piercing light shoots down from skies, engulfing the woman in a radiant aura that pushes the mob back!

With another flash of light, cotton balls swarm about the area bringing feelings of confusion and fear amongst the people. This feeling only heightens when the cotton begins to spark with stinging electricity while the silhouette of a fluffy creature known as the wool Pokemon Mareep made its appearance in the sky.

Mareep eyes the woman understandingly before making a loud cry that forces the balls of cotton to disperse and activate at full blast!

_Every time I stare out into the wide blue sky, I can't help but realize how fortunate it is to exist. _

_Earth, a planet blessed with so much mystery and beauty... It's no shock that Pokemon choose to exist as this realm's protectors of life and secrets._

_Pokemon, beings that appear so unstoppable and eternal…Beings that can freely manipulate the very element of life as if to mock their meager human living mates… _

_The mystery around these creatures and their unknown destined connection to we wasteful humans is one that spanned for ages. A feeling of magic and adventure that linked two seemingly different beings to each other creating a bond that lasted as long as the time guardian can tell…_

All that once antagonizes the woman are now nothing but cinders blowing in the wind…

She now watches helplessly as her wool savior shudders in massive pain. Eventually, the little Pokemon gives into these ill feelings and forcefully fades away…

Taking its place is the slow approach of a girl in school uniform who can easily be seen as a wide-eyed, twelve or thirteen-year-old look-a-like… Well, had not been for her long bangs.

The woman's worries wash away to tearful relief when she races over to give the familiar face a hug… This only results in the girl forcing her hand through the woman's stomach…

_…But, there are many things a magical heart cannot cure… _

Blood seeps down the woman's lips as she slowly faces the child who gives nothing more than a feral expression. Seeing this, the heartbroken woman smiles as the tears rolling down her cheeks are last feeling of warmth she receives…

Falling limp, the grip on her golden ring slips away and shatters when hitting the ground…

_That is when we look to our dreams as we fly into the horizon…_

--

**Distanced Hurricane Pilot Series**

**Cursed Wings! A Martyr Named Hiromi -I Won't Lose!-**

--

(Johto Region: Violet City)

"Eh? Johto's best lost to Kanto's in the exhibition?" a woman queries to her circle of four friends. "Nothing surprising, those Kanto-breeds are impenetrable powerhouses."

"Kanto sure does have a mighty ego though; wanting to pit their Gym Leaders against our own in a fight for what was it? Kicks?! More like an instant massacre…" shrugs the other woman, who covers her just-out-of-salon-done hair with a hairnet.

"B-but our Falkner fought very hard!" A woman a tad younger than the rest of her middle-aged acquaintances blurts before breaking into an unsure mutter. "Although… I didn't really see the match on TV myself…that's just what I heard… He even defeated the… person with the thing…"

The other four women turn to their youngest acquaintance with expressions of clear annoyance.

"The **ninja girl **from **Fuchsia City **if that's "the thing" you're talking about, withdrew before the battle even started for ninja related matters or something." The third of the women grins. "Who can understand these modern day ninjas anyway? Bunch of overgrown children in tights running around legally with knives if you ask me."

"Only in Kanto!" the four women confirm with chuckles.

Their laughter is short-lived thanks to the sound of sirens from an ambulance speeding towards its destination.

"Such a racket… And no surprise, it's heading to Kageyama Junior High…" the second woman sighs.

Though not saying anything, the youngest woman watches the ambulance with a nervous expression. It is not until she hears the description of the child and his condition from random people chasing the vehicle that makes her lose all sense of balance and gives chase.

"It's a sad thing isn't it?" the first woman mutters dejectedly.

The third woman nods, "That Lynette… She thought of no one but herself by inflicting the hot-blood curse in THIS place of history and sanctity!"

"Considering Violet's _history_, the violence from local youths was a problem far greater than a child who just became the butt of blame only two years ago." The final of the woman voices sternly. "How do you think Lynette feels about all this?"

"You act as if we **want** out hearts to waver towards Lynette!" the first woman argues. "We cried just as much as Lynette did when she lost her first child, but her second child… something that should have suffered a similar fate…"

The first woman has trouble trying to finish her words leaving the second of the group to leave her own input: "Such a horrible era for Violet… With Falkner's so-called clan of bird-users declining, Violet really has nothing left…" she sighs. "It's just so shocking how her child, not some jealous outsider that brought about the fall of the Pokemon passionate Hiromi family…"

Everyone but the fourth woman, who shakes her head, agrees to this conclusion.

As the ambulance continues toward its location, a woman with short curly brown hair wearing an every-day-wear dress for autumn with a matching jacket and pair of shoes tightens her hold on the two grocery bags she holds while watching the vehicle zoom towards the all too familiar path.

The woman, dubbed by many as bringer of Violet's dark era, better known as Lynette Hiromi, finds herself having to hold both bags with one arm in order to pull out her cell phone from her right jacket pocket.

Taking one look at the message, she sighs.

--

Mrs. Hiromi sat stiffly in her chair. Biting the bottom of her lip, the woman steals a few looks at the Principal, who calmly calls for security to break-up the fighting that went on right in front of his closed office door.

It really puzzles the woman how the man could be so calm with those children banging on the door like that…

"Mrs. Hiromi," the Principal begins coolly, "I've been in the education field from the bottom-up. I have come to meet many kinds of children with their own little stories of sorts… I come to learn your daughter May possesses quite a tale. As much joy I feel to be selected the man to ready such a child for the qualms of society, I grieve." he continues. "The overly-violent outbursts May inflicts on her peers seem to be too much for this school to endure… As much as destiny calls, I must think of the larger scope."

"I won't reprimand my daughter defending herself!" Mrs. Hiromi counters to his surprise. "I acknowledge the frustration you must feel, as much as I understand the pain any parent would face when your child comes back home cut and bruised from a place where they're supposed to learn such methods of resolving matters aren't the way…"

Mrs. Hiromi places her hands where the heart is to emphasize her feelings. "My child always comes home to me with cuts and bruises and never tells me a word. Yet, I'm always stuck hearing all the damage **she **caused!"

"Mrs. Hiromi, I understand the distress you feel for your obviously troubled child but we cannot ignore the facts." The Principal reasons. "While she gains cuts and skinned knees, the others who cross her leave with fractures and casts. She's also reported to be a frequent no-show for classes and because of all this, I greatly fear for her future…"

The Principal feels relief when "reality" sinks into Mrs. Hiromi.

"Do not fret Mrs. Hiromi, I do not believe you bear witchcraft or your daughter a mythical creature of any caliber. She is just a child unable to keep up with the pace our faculty is offering thus, in all her frustration, shows inability to rationalize her feelings and act like a functioning human being." He confirms. "In all my years, I came across only a handful of children that _Ahem_, possessed that special need-"

"Yes, my daughter is _special_…" Mrs. Hiromi interrupts. "She's a beautiful, intelligent, passionate and honest child who'd I'd sell my soul a thousand times over to claim as my own!"

"It is understandable for a parent to disbelieve the truth of their offspring-"

Mrs. Hiromi angrily stands and slams her hands against the Principal's desk. "Why don't you pull your head out of that dictionary and that poorly pressed Italian suit to stop worrying about that dream home you plan to own in one of the regional territories and start focusing on the present!"

The Principal holds nothing but annoyance on his face when he warns the woman to refrain talking to him like that any time in the future.

Mrs. Hiromi ignores this and makes her way to the door.

"…I apologize you feel so ruffled about this Mrs. Hiromi… though in time- No," the Principal cuts himself off. "You made the correct move… Perhaps the school's reputation can finally refurbish-"

Mrs. Hiromi stops in her place to face the man once more. "Yes and good luck picking up your career in this **right-out-of-a-kung-fu-movie junior high school! **Oh, and it's very unbecoming of a man to wear a full head toupee for a hard to see bald spot! Accept yourself and get your priorities straight!"

The woman then storms out of the room, leaving the Principal to adjust his rather displaced toupee.

--

A "freaked out" expression is the best way to explain Mrs. Hiromi's face after spending so much of her time dodging fight-crazed students just to find an empty nurse's office.

Perhaps May's condition is now something that has **her **in the hospital. Or worse, she's being hostage by some student's act of personal revenge!

These thoughts made the worrisome woman grow into a shaky daze.

"WHY IS THAT DOOR OPEN?"

Mrs. Hiromi weakly turns to and is run over by a dark-haired young woman whose most noticeable features, aside from the crazed look on her face, is her glasses, the white medical coat and the first-aid kit she grips.

It's not until the crazy- or more to say, Kageyama Junior High's school nurse steps out of the office with a strained expression muttering, "I can't believe it" repeatedly, is when her identity is a clear one.

Though having no problem curing fate for the rest of the day, the nurse feels all life freeze over when noticing a rather gloomy Mrs. Hiromi grabbing onto her ankle. Without giving it too much thought, she helps Mrs. Hiromi up, saying nothing for the remainder of the time.

"So… you have no clue where my May would go around this time?" Mrs. Hiromi questions.

The nurse blankly shakes her head, leaving Mrs. Hiromi to fall into another slump.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting but… I know where the Hiromi Devil is."

Both women turn to see a shy girl, quite tall her age, whose most noticeable features had to be the Kageyama Junior High uniform, an official dress code that **hardly any student **in that school takes seriously. The second would be her obvious purple contacts and wild two-tone (believably dyed) auburn hairstyle that gives her that untamed feel.

Mrs. Hiromi figures looking like that would avoid pressure from both peers and teachers. Still, something about the child bothers her…

"Her name is May; you seem like a nice enough girl, so I'm pretty sure you would dislike it if you were called a devil."

The tall girl looks away before facing the woman with a bit of confidence.

--

_"If you're really looking for her, then you should definitely look in Apricot Park first, it's well known to be her hang-out spot."_

A hangout spot that was conveniently located on THE OTHER SIDE OF TOWN! At least Mrs. Hiromi can finally piece together her daughter's periodic lateness.

Running through this large yet lush park really makes the woman equally thankful for taking those cardio-workouts but she really wishes she could slow down and enjoy the lushness part…

Children playing and laughing with the activities of the younger ones watched by their loving parents who chat amongst themselves, Pokemon fanatics showing off their domesticated friends in a nearby talent show.

Even the wild Pidgey roosting in trees relax within the serene beauty of a park that seems to exist in its own little eternity.

To think her daughter actually enjoys being around such tranquility. Even if she's resting somewhere in this spacious place, Mrs. Hiromi can't help but feel their hearts melding closer.

This sense of intuition buffers when bumping into a girl who can easily be seen as a wide-eyed, twelve or thirteen-year-old look-a-like… Well, had not been for her long bangs. Aside from the unfavorable Kageyama uniform, the girl appears overdressed for this season with the thick hooded school burgundy sweater, and a light blue scarf.

Mrs. Hiromi blinks twice when the girl faces her with a dull expression but freaks out when she collapses in her arms. The woman hastily checks the girl's pulse, feeling great relief to know she's all right.

"Wait! Please don't let that child run off!" a voice calls from afar.

Mrs. Hiromi remains silent as a woman in a light blue Pokeball design apron races towards her and after catching her breath, thanks her before firmly places an ointment on the girl's injury.

"This kind of bump can easily bring one to a concussion; it's a shocker alone she remained conscious for who knows how long." The woman begins, facing Mrs. Hiromi with a smile. "But I should just count my blessings to see she let herself go in the arms of someone apparently close to her."

A small blush paints Mrs. Hiromi's cheeks as she brushes the unconscious girl's bangs. Shortly joining the scene are two women wearing the same apron design.

Though spending time to catch their breath, they also show relief. One of them even mentioning she's glad she won't have to explain this to the children leaving Mrs. Hiromi to give a questioning look.

"Oh, not too far from her is a little daycare center for young children. We tend to take the children to the park for recreational exercises and they really enjoy your little sister's company." The lead woman smiles widely. "Though she's withdrawn, if the kids nag her enough, she'll push them on the swings and slides and she generally makes sure none of them get into trouble. She really is a welcome entity to many of the parents here."

Mrs. Hiromi gives a small look of surprise but again, feels something is very off. "I see… but despite how cute she is, May is my daughter."

--

(That night: Hiromi Household)

Though running the risk of awakening her child, Mrs. Hiromi runs her fingers through her hair.

Half past one with today already calling it a close, not that the nightlife meant anything to Lynette Hiromi. The two-week break from work and overtime is a request long overdue. Even if she can officially kiss the first week goodbye, relaxation is far from her list…

Just watching her child makes her realize just how little she really knows… The description those Apricot Daycare women make would be a huge shocker to the people here…

…Well, maybe not to that girl…

She, like many in Violet, chooses to use "devil", but her notion of it seems to be in a manner of affection and respect. As much as this saddens Mrs. Hiromi, she has to face reality… Still, she can't help but feel the spirits were on her side when meeting Kageyama's school nurse. The kind young woman's information really gave light to her daughter's overall scenario and the ride to and from Apricot Park could mark the beginning of a new friendship…

Her trade of words with the Principal quickly ends that happy memory…

She feels bittersweet over it, but Mrs. Hiromi inwardly chuckles at the crack she made about that poor man's toupee…

"Look at you, you're a carefree stray Meowth on one corner and an alley Persian here…" Mrs. Hiromi chuckles softly. "Perhaps we should just admit we're problems and live with it. However, May, we can't do that unless you believe in me as I do you! I know your trust is the last thing I deserve but…"

The woman cuts herself off when the phone rings.

Whoever calls someone at this hour is persistent about it. Prank callers went either insomniac or the anonymous "Leave this place! Your family is bringing us misfortune." callers have lost all-purpose in life; it would be better to just get it over with rather than have it clutter the messenger.

"Hello? Long distance call? …Oh, of course I'll accept! Thank you so much!" she spoke rather happily. "Dear? Of all times to call, it's 1:42 AM… Only afternoon where you are? I can imagine… Um, Dear-"

A light-hearted chuckle escapes Mrs. Hiromi's being. "Yes, yes, you know me best. However, is it under my descriptions? May needs to be away from city stress, we all do… I see… Nothing close to where you work available? Then, just fax me the catalog photos of all possible options, we'll sit down and work through it-" she sighs. "… I understand. You do have heavy duties to uphold after all Mister Gym Leader! I'll just work with it from there and come back to you quickly then! Love ya! And…I miss you…"

Mrs. Hiromi then, hangs the phone.

--

(Two days later: Violet Streets)

Mrs. Hiromi stretches lazily before breathing away any laziness left in her. "On lovely days like this, the best way to find yourself is by breathing some of the great fresh air no matter how polluted it is!" she claims jovially.

"You know… I could have easily stayed home if you were going to drag me out here for nothing. It's not like school is a problem or anything." Her daughter May replies sourly.

It's a lovely Thursday afternoon in October. While Mrs. Hiromi remains content in one of her autumn sets, May (at the request of Mrs. Hiromi) dresses a tad lighter today with her more autumn oriented lavender coat, black skirt with same color stockings and boots. She still oddly enough wore that same scarf along with matching mittens which couldn't be seen since she kept her hands in her jacket pockets.

Mrs. Hiromi looks to the sky as if considering May's words. "Hmm… Yes, I should be really happy that I wasn't paying tuition or we'd have real problems." She grins. "Besides, you're great company. Maybe we can go to that park you like so much later to relax."

May watches her mother in exasperation before walking ahead.

Thinking about it, she really can't argue when that ditzy woman is concerned. That _innocent_ brat everyone keeps gushing over on a bet decided to be stupid and hit her from behind with, when she got her hands on him, a sandbag of all things.

Nothing else to say except it still hurts, her senses and mobility feel groggy and she's given the term "sleeping in" a brand new twist as of late.

May stops walking to stare at a teddy bear wearing a red scarf and fighter pilot jacket on display. Despite making no facial change, a strong blush forms on her cheeks.

"Aha! So you are a child." Mrs. Hiromi replies from behind. The woman ignores her daughter's scowls to look at the item herself. "It's very cute, do you want it?"

"Lynette, is that you?" a woman with short blue hair greets before May can answer. "You remember me right? We met at that parent teacher conference a year and eight months ago concerning student safety?"

Remembering one-shot names and faces are NOT a strong point of Lynette Hiromi. It's a tad embarrassing, as this woman seems to have the distinguishing feature of having her eyes closed in a foxy manner the whole time…

Since she doesn't want to offend her, Mrs. Hiromi gives a hesitant nod.

The smile on the woman's face widens. "You're a horrible liar Lynette. That Kageyama gets worse by the year, I had to transfer my son to Cross Creek and he still wasn't safe from those delinquents…"

"Y-yes, the problem with youths has gotten rather out of hand hasn't it?" Mrs. Hiromi responds uneasily.

"Feh, rather than be people with potential futures or Pokemon trainers, as far as Violet is concerned: Once ten, children become thugs and delinquents who can wield Pokemon legally-" the woman cut herself off to smile at May. "Except for our _cute_ possessed friend here…"

May narrows her eyes at the woman but flinches when she bent down to caress her cheek.

"A lot of people envy her Lynette, always able to get into problems with other children and not gain serious injuries… Maybe a _**bump on the head **_here or there…" the woman moans almost longingly. "Your May might be the only child in her age group to walk around with her parent so foot-loose and fancy free… It isn't a shock to me anymore that she ignited the younger children's involvement in what used to be a rivalry between high school brats…"

At this point, Mrs. Hiromi grows deeply nervous but the woman calms her.

"Lynette, I'm not like the ignorant masses that bitterly talk behind your back. With what you posses, any person would passionately justify its existence…" she smiles. "I don't know how it happened exactly, but I'd sell my soul a million times over to obtain that for my own…"

Mrs. Hiromi wants to protest yet remains silent when May squeezes the woman's wrist.

"This is why I hate adults," she growls. "Always using their kids for their petty competitions, always having a hidden agenda, and always, always throwing in some kind of scapegoat to rule out the reality that's really around them- Don't screw around!"

May shoves the woman's hand aside and walks off, leaving the woman to voice: "I took my son out of that school so he wouldn't become antagonized by monsters like you!"

This gives the girl leeway to stop in her place and turn to the woman with a bright smile. "Oh? Then that Pokemon junkie shouldn't be so weak then, nya? Oh," she adds. "Touching me without permission is a punishment of a thousand paper cuts. You… might want to start getting some bandages now."

With that, the girl walks away, leaving the woman in her own bitterness (along with a heavily bleeding hand) and Mrs. Hiromi in slight awe.

--

As part of her schedule, Mrs. Hiromi decides to place past events where they belong and take her daughter to her favorite diner: "Sprout Café & Luncheon".

Despite the lack of conversation between the two, something tugs at the woman's heart…

"May," Mrs. Hiromi begins. "Earlier today I could've sworn I heard you say _Nya_."

"So? Isn't that something I usually say?"

"Well yes, its just… you haven't said that in such a long time I was pretty much caught off guard when you just blurted it out like that." Mrs. Hiromi smiles lightly.

Since May chooses to pay that line no mind, the woman decides to push a new topic by revealing two photocopies.

The one on the left is a nicely designed home in an urban area and the one on the right is…of nice sizing in a seemingly rural environment… but rather… rundown in its outward appearance.

"Yeah, you do have a good point… the one on the left is quite the eye candy… But May, aren't you tired of the noise in the city?" Mrs. Hiromi reasons when her daughter shows disdain for the picture on the right.

As the woman doesn't allow her child to comment, she furthers her analysis. "This one isn't so bad… some interior repair, paint job of our choice… Sure, it'll badly burn our pockets and take a lot of work, but that's country life at its best!" Mrs. Hiromi grins lecherously. "By doing all the work ourselves we'll get the price of the home slashed drastically!"

Though May knows she wouldn't be doing any of that "grueling work" her enthusiastic mother talks of, she goes back to her drink all the same.

That is, until the shriek of a falling waitress who crashes in front of them. Better put: a waitress falls to the floor because of the blind dash of fellow who covers himself in a violet cloak.

No matter how it's looked at, the trays of food and drinks the waitress hold all hit either the floor or the Hiromis.

Of course, this event easily caught the attention of everyone within the café.

"Oops." The fellow replies flatly.

Even if her sighing says otherwise, Mrs. Hiromi shakes the matter off, her daughter however-

"It was deliberate!" May argues. "I can understand if you're a ditz, but how can you ignore **that**?"

May glares at her mother only to meet an odd mixture of strength and sincerity within her eyes. This eventually forces the girl to take a seat.

"Hmph, and here we all thought the enchantress who brought that abomination into our world had no control over it. Even mistakes can be dealt with it seems. But you know…" the fellow smirks. "It's still a mistake no matter how you look at it."

After those words, the cloaked troublemaker now had the woman's complete attention.

"What's wrong enchantress? The truth has been existent for quite some time: Nobody fears your little abomination."

Mrs. Hiromi gives the fellow little expression before looking away to grab a napkin. "Then you must be blind, I only see a cute little girl in front of me." She answers eventually.

The fellow simply takes what's left of Mrs. Hiromi's coffee and tosses its contents at the window "for clarity", as he put it.

His actions create tension within the on-lookers. However, none of them dare act out what they were feeling…

Despite all this, Mrs. Hiromi ignores the troublemaker and begins wiping the contents from her face. She shortly stretches over the table to do the same for May, only adding to the girl's frustration.

The cloaked troublemaker shrugs simply as he walks over the scowling waitress. "How you noble families remain so high and mighty when they're nothing goes beyond me. After all, the Hiromi strength dispersed the moment your **husband abandoned you!**"

May slams her right fist onto the table, forcefully bringing the object lower in height. No further action could take place considering Mrs. Hiromi firmly places her hand on her daughter's and daintily, yet painfully, continues her actions.

This makes the cloaked troublemaker leave the café quite content… Until he finds himself suddenly spun around face to face with, the Sprout Café's aged owner. The owner keeps a very stern look on his face as he grabs the fellow by his violet cloth.

"You're welcome to your opinions, but keep your trash outside my life's work! Don't let me catch you in here again!"

The owner releases his grip on the cloaked troublemaker, forcing him to lose all balance and fall onto the floor himself. The whole café share a good laugh at this.

"True heroes are always mocked before reality hits the face of the masses!" he growls.

"You call yourself a _hero_?" a teen, in private high school uniform, snickers with his three friends.

"Obviously!" he argues. "From the way it looks, I'm the only one unwilling to idle by and watch a place as fortuitous as Violet fall at the hands of that traitorous enchantress Lynette Hiromi and her vile hot-blood curse! All while our friends and younger siblings fall prey to her devil!…You'd have to be utterly stupid or already under her mind control to see otherwise-"

"Don't give us that self profound banter! You're nothing more than another local hood trying to make a name for yourself. You're type is the real trash here!" the teen scoffs.

"Hey, you wanna see abominations? Ever look in a mirror, pal?" a tourist from Goldenrod City heckles.

The café broke into fit of laughter after this. Of course, the cloaked troublemaker is obviously furious, but with HE being the one set a fool, exiting is the best option.

May pulls away from her mother to give chase. Much to her displeasure, Mrs. Hiromi grabs her right wrist.

The café again found itself wrapped in silence as the two Hiromis trade words. No matter whom they agreed with, it ends with May simply, yet forcefully, removing her mother's grip to give chase.

--

(Some time later: Violet Streets)

Finding that troublemaker proves easy, May realizes when she finally spots a moving violet cloak race under a walkway.

It's just…she might have to take a number…And honestly, with the noises coming from there, it's doing a great job at making her edgy…

The monstrous ones anyway…

After some more horrified cries and savage barks, that cloaked troublemaker drags himself out of the underpass. Full of cuts and his tattered cloak drenched in his blood, his shock to be alive takes a more content turn when seeing the confusion on May's face.

"_Cough! Cough!_ I didn't think it would turnout like this…but…the time I spend in the hospital will be more than worth it to know…_cough! _This will…this ravaged form of mine will finally make the people of this town wake up and chase you down like the demonic creature you truly are…" he states in-between pants victoriously.

"…I may be the demon but at least my remains won't be food for a barking one." May replies to his disdain. "Unless they're put in their place, they always get the most blood-thirsty. And moreover, because of you, that woman is more annoying than ever…I can't get rid of her as easily I can you though."

"_Cough…_Arrogant to the bitter end… As expected from a demon hiding behind nobility… Hope to dispose of the evidence, devil?" the cloaked troublemaker scoffs before thanking her for the juicy inside secrets.

"I never denied being what I am from the start. I know it and I'm proud of it. What I AM tired of however, is getting into fights, as there's nothing coming out of it anymore. All the interesting types are getting cluttered out by weaklings and cowards. Even the person I love to fight most just up and disappeared…"

"How _cough! _Touching… Now… before my spirit can no longer compensate for my body and this town slays you-"

"_**You just don't get it do you…?!**_"

Perhaps its blood loss, perhaps it's his inner will crumbling, but when that fellow gets in range of the anger seething out of that girl, he trembles.

He admits it, in a place like Violet City where traditionalism and folklore are the golden point; he loves to read about and place hexes and chants on those he dislikes. Nothing serious, they don't even work and it just earns him more ridicule from his peers…

Then, he hears of an enchanter known for communicating with spirits. She's even able to make actual incantations! The proof as most claim, is in the form of her "child".

He couldn't believe this until actually meeting the woman in her own home. While she turns down any request for apprenticeship, she does give him a bizarre-looking charm to ward away the unlucky spirits that she claims have been haunting him.

He's not too sure about being unlucky, but because of that charm he wears like a necklace lifted off the goddess of fortune herself, he can now see a little of, if not feel abnormalities around him! He always knew he had **some **level of spiritual power and that little charm just enables him see wandering spirits, the emanation of other people's souls…

This includes the nearly unfathomable sparking roar for a soul that enchantress possesses when he saw her walking by a few weeks back. However, his idol was utterly oblivious to the gale of death and destruction circling her daughter…

He saw it for himself; the breeze around her would kick up when close to an innocent soul then bind it! The strained soul would then make every attempt possible to avoid being fully devoured bringing about the displeasure for the physical body. The only thing that sabotages that devil is the power from that same enchantress who created her…

…It finally makes sense…

Now here he stands, in the eye of the very gale he sought to extinguish from the very same devil that sent his heart astray from the one he admires…

He even… gave into rumors and got a loan on the very same thing that, though successfully forces that devil back in what could possibly be a weakness, nearly killed him!

Moreover, it looks like its coming to finish them both…!

Whatever anger May still has washes away into uneasiness when facing a large, mostly black and gray wolf-like Pokemon, if it's even fair to call a creature of such badass detail a Pokemon.

Regardless of the case scenario, it's one foreign to her and dangerous! Pokemon of this caliber were seriously the worst…! Yet people still place those unstable things higher than their own lives…Foolishness really!

While instincts say run, her body shutdown, only heightening that foreign creature's bloodlust.

"Oh calm down, it's only a harmless puppy that entered its evolutionary requirements too suddenly. Geeks only know geek stuff not Pokemon." An older male voice reasons from behind.

May blinks twice when realizing those same private school teens from the café stood around her all before she crumples to silent shudders when the seemingly talkative one grip and tugs her left bang.

"Look at her, that antenna hair really are her horns, man." The second teen comments when viewing the void in May's expression.

"Spaced out, looks like that hex geek was telling the truth after all." The third, better built teen, agrees. "Let's just take a picture and bail before something happens."

When the group agrees to this, they come to remember the existence of the bloodied MVP who brought about this trophy.

"Hey…what did I…tell you guys…_ Cough!_ But seriously…_Cough! Cough! _That crazy Pokemon you loaned me swiped my gift from the enchantress…" the battered teen extends his arm at the creature who returns to the side of the fourth teen contently. "Gi-give it back to me! It's because of that I proved the Hiromi devil exists…It also awakens my latent spiritual powers…C'mon fellas…"

"Man, you're cornier than those lame guys who do dumb crap to get on TV." The second teen laugh when he receives Mrs. Hiromi's charm from the fourth teen. "What's so frickin' great about this ugly thing?"

"Totally got ripped off dude…Dumber than you talk…" the third teen sighs when he gets to examine it.

"**Kuu…****You shitty bastards gimme back my-**"

"wh…are you making fun of me?" May cuts in shakily. "Wh-who gave you permission to touch my hair?!"

"Sure, sure you're secret's safe with us, you're just some weird punk with a knack for fighting-" the first teen laughs before he's cut off by the sharp pain in his bang holding wrist.

If it's simply the strength that girl's rumored to posses that's one thing, but what leaves the teen and his friends in shock is the reality that she **isn't** touching him. Yet, the one foolish enough to call a bluff now must deal with a lower arm that cuts and crushes itself along a sharp breeze.

"Don't ever, EVER touch my hair unless I say you can!" May roars when smashing her fist smashing into his stomach.

The teen feels his body hit the ground hard, yet that reflex nulls in comparison to the struggle for air and intense stinging pain his stomach feels.

With this move startling everyone human, only the fearsome wolf-like Pokemon takes action by leaping in between the girl and its master's fallen friend. Ignoring the girl's stumbling back, the foreign Pokemon now resorts to the steps taken should its master, his little sister or his friends fall into danger: That being whisking the hurt player out of the battlefield as fast as it can.

She might have looked like a kid on the verge of tears but…that…whatever she is, **should not **be pissed off! Is the resolve of those left behind as they give chase.

Taking time to calm herself, May heaves a heavy sigh before turning to that cloaked guy.

…All this trouble over one of her mom's talismans? Even in his current shape, that cloaked martyr tries to drag his messed up body towards it.

"Chill out, these things burn me when I touch them anyway." May huffs when the fellow shows desperation the moment she approaches the item. "I hate it when people make fun of my hair and it got pulled because of you! I don't get any of this, but I hope I don't get stupid when I get as old as you!"

"Whu…who said you'd **get** older?" the fellow growls. "Granted, I see my quarrel is with you and your power tainted my soul… I wouldn't want that charm anymore even if it WAS a gift from the enchantress! Especially if you put your sullied hands on it…"

The teen eyes bulge out of his head when that heartless, mother-eater devil says "fine" and kicks the item towards him. She could've broke it after all…

"I already told you, I know what I am and I like that. I'm just tired of fighting but I won't lose to trash like you or to lameass things like Pokemon, ever!" May claims. "That's because, I'm simply someone who can control the wind. So, shall I carry you away?"

** To be continued**

--

(Notes)

**Introduction****: **I've always been a devoted fan to the "Cursed Ones" story Arc-types in the shounen field while in the field of Pokemon, my loyalty has always lied with the third generation which revived the vibe Pokemon gave me that generation two lacked completely. I always wanted to mix these two worlds together to make an over-the-top supernatural action shounen with the Pokemon backbone and mechanics, but could never get into the groove…

Despite that, I worked pretty long/hard on this on-going work and hopefully was able to grab a bit of the vibe from both fields. The story starts (and emphasizes) with a pace that matches daily life in a deeply whimsical sense before moving on. And despite the human-centric feel (which is honestly out of my own belief that it's hard to see the Pokemon world **without** humans), please enjoy your stay.

**Notes****: **All I wanted was a nice 15-20 page prologue before I got into the main story.

However, things seemed a lot more difficult than I thought, so that estimate expanded into a two-parter, making me think how can I still call it a prologue with that being the case. Pacing and planning of the Prologue's direction constantly shifted and changed. In the course of months of on and off work, I found myself rewriting the chapter as a whole **ten times**.

Finally, I have the result: I kinda scrap the prologue idea, breaking it into a three-part pilot: **Chapter 0**. This pretty much serves what I wanted with the prologue idea…

**On a side note**: For all those who were wondering about it, the name of May's Junior High: **Kageyama** is actually based off the singer **Hironobu Kageyama**. For those all those who are either a fan of his talent (like myself) or a DBZ vet/Saint Seiya fan (again, like myself) this name shouldn't be an uncommon one.

**08/10/07 Update****:** Though apologizing to those who already read the original version, I updated the chapter to have the entire story (save for situations that call for a flashback) into present tense as well as killed any "wordiness" in the situation. Or at least tried to the best of my ability anyway.

Also, I altered the ending scenario, as I: **1) **Never liked the scenario but was strapped for ideas and got impatient about releasing. It always felt so…off from everything else (the situation beforehand and events to come). And: **2) **It's pretty much closer to the original ideas to the overall premise I had to **Chapter 0**.

Design-wise, May, be it game incarnation, anime or the loosely based Sapphire from the Pokemon Special manga, her stand-out point (design-wise) was always her hairstyle. Couldn't help but actually take a shot of that, I figured she might have a strong feeling of pride in her hair but also a very fragile level of self-consciousness, as it's something very different from others design-wise. Only characters (in franchise) I could see rival that is Crystal or Emerald but that's stories in themselves…

**04/07/08 Update****:** Heh… I guess at this point, I can call this Distanced Hurricane Version 2. What was repaired was not structure but uses of punctuation and whatever edits/fixes I missed in the past. Still not perfect, but I'm slowly getting stronger… I also gave the three part pilot series formerly called **Chapter 0 **a proper name suiting the situation. This time however, I'm gonna make sure ALL chapters (not just my very spoiled **Chapter 0**) get fixes and much needed edits.


	2. Chapter 0b

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

"Let go!" May Hiromi shouts when her mother grabs her right wrist.

It's bad enough this ditzy woman meddles into things halfheartedly, but even now, when someone goes ahead and **humiliates** them she still wishes to play-

"What will you get out of attacking him? You'll only be giving him what he wants!" Mrs. Hiromi argues.

"So I should be like _you_? I don't have time to be some idiot's throw-rug!"

At this point, all Mrs. Hiromi does is shake her head slowly. Not like that means anything, May simply, yet forcefully, removes the woman's grip.

Mrs. Hiromi now watches silently as her child storms out of the café; living up to the expectations that cruel youth and a handful of others in Violet City deem her good for.

Today wasn't suppose to turn out like this, she laments…

Mrs. Hiromi snaps out of her thoughts when the Café owner places a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You shouldn't worry too much, she's called a devil because of her monstrous strength right?" he assures, giving a small thumbs up for atmosphere.

Making many come to the belief he's totally missing the point…

The private school teenager who earlier aids in that troublemaker's humiliation turns to his three friends. With a nod, all four of them, like many who probably can't handle the drama, make their way out of the Café.

The owner frowns at this but couldn't question it. As he walks off to gather staff and extra cleaning supplies, the waitress knocked over by the troublemaker kindly uses a partially clean napkin to wipe Mrs. Hiromi's face.

"Thank y-Eh?" chokes Mrs. Hiromi the moment she sees the waitress' face.

The waitress, or should we say: Kageyama's Junior High's nurse finds herself in equal awkwardness.

Both women now curse their one-shot memories.

--

** Distanced Hurricane Pilot Series**

** Cursed Wings! A Martyr Named Hiromi -Disillusion-**

--

(A couple of weeks later)

The clock reads 6:03 AM as its alarm function starts its furious wakeup call.

A slender arm reaches out to put an end to the annoying contraption only to knock it to the floor out of grogginess.

Low grunting of a female voice is heard as her arm lazily shuffles about until finally grabbing the desired object and bringing it towards the body. As she can't see without her glasses, Kageyama's school nurse squints at the clock before unconsciously turning it off.

_My name is Terri Rosen. Age twenty seven, native place of birth: Mahogany Town of the Johto district. My occupation…_

Terri nods off for a moment before realizing the time. The woman frantically snatches her glasses when jumping out of bed and racing towards the shower.

--

Terri heaves a sigh of relief, everything seemed set: 7:15 AM and ready for work. She also has two plates full of breakfast, two prepared lunches and a large plate full of sandwiches.

Only one thing left to do…

The woman heads down the hall, stopping in front of a door with the words "PURE & PRETTY" written on pink construction paper. Opening the door slowly, Terri smiles while watching a little girl, about the age of eight, with dark brown hair snuggling close to her Teddiursa. Sitting close to resting duo in a blanket of her own, is Terri's Jynx named Jeanne, who sleeps equally sound on a wooden chair.

Terri can't help but feel guilty for her next course of action: "Safiya, I let you sleep a little extra but its time to get up. You too, Jeanne."

Some stirring occurs on all sides, but eventually, the trio all leave their slumber.

While Jeanne the Jynx simply heads down the hall while rubbing her eyes, Safiya's rituals are a bit more lax. Taking time to sit up, the eight-year-old gives a little yawn, completely unaware of her bad case of "pillow hair" that'll take time to tame. Teddiursa copies these gestures only to reveal his fur suffers from the same syndrome.

"Goo mornin' Auntie." Safiya greets.

"Good morning yourself pillow head," Terri greets before getting back on topic. "Now, stop wasting time. If you stay there any longer you won't have time to do everything and will end up late for school."

Safiya rubs her eyes before turning to see the actual time. With reality finally setting in, she frantically dashes out of bed saying something about meeting her friends before class. Teddiursa hastily follows.

"Hey, just remember to get cleaned up first." Terri chuckles.

_Someone might call this scene the heartwarming picture of a loving single parent family… That's not the case though; all of this is just a reflection of the unexpected twists and turns of life._

_Growing up, I always wanted to be a journalist. But as I learned in high school, my editorial abilities are horrid… So I decided to follow in my mother's footsteps by entering the health field… It's a difficult trade, but a lot more in demand than journalists. According to Mom anyway…_

_Even if that was the case, I didn't want to give-up journalism completely! With Violet City being a place so rich in history and high in nursing demand, I figured utilizing my journalism skills would be easiest there! It was only Jeanne and I when we moved here a year and few months ago… And almost three months, five weeks and seven days ago when Safiya entered my life…_

_Though I'm still gathering evidence, Safiya is said to be a child of a so-called estranged cousin on Mom's side of the family who left a letter claiming she can no longer raise her. Rather than keep Safiya in Mahogany, Mom and Dad passed legal guardianship over to their "successful daughter living it good in the city of Johto's great history". _

_Hah… Living it good? Too bad they never realized their "successful daughter" worked as a low paid school nurse, had piles of debt and pretty much regretted her move… Safiya and later, the stray Teddiursa she finds, just became extra mouths to feed… And a reason to land my second job as a waitress at Sprout Café & Luncheon just to balance out the high wages of living in a "prestigious" place like Violet…_

_…Oh well… Even if I don't know the full details, I worry about how well I can raise a child at all! Safiya is a sweet, unselfish child caught in the middle of some practically nameless family feud. She's family, and I can't deny that. If the story is a lie, then I hope Safiya won't mind being called Safiya Rosen._

_This could be a good experience for all of us… At least that's what I believe…_

Teddiursa sits on the table, greedily munching away on the plate of sandwiches. Feeling a strong sense of foreboding danger, Teddiursa turns to face Jeanne the Jynx with a nervous expression, offering the sandwich he held.

Jeanne ignores the teddy bear Pokemon and takes the plate of sandwiches as she walks by.

Safiya, like her teddy bear companion, also stuffs her face only to beat her chest followed by guzzling down some juice after swallowing too quickly.

"Safiya we have loads of time, calm down and eat." Terri reprimands.

Safiya makes a response to this, but her words were muffled from all the food in her mouth. Terri sighs at this, sipping her coffee to show there's nothing to worry about.

It is at this point Jeanne hands her human companion her stopwatch, treating the plate no longer holding sandwiches as shield from the particles of coffee Terri spits out…

"AHH!! IT'S **THIS **LATE!!" Terri stops freaking out to turn to the silent Safiya and Teddiursa. "WHY ARE YOU TWO EATING SO CASUALLY? WE HAVE TO MOVE! MOVE!! **MOVE!!"**

Safiya, dot-eyed, could only mouth "Bu" before Terri whisks her and Teddiursa to the backseat of the car within minutes. Jeanne joins afterwards, with everyone's belongings in tow and after, in her own way, securing the apartment door.

--

(Twenty minutes later: Violet Streets)

Nothing but honking and frustration exists on the road.

Terri stares at the seemingly endless line of cars before her, heaves a heavy sigh and proceeds to continuously bang her head against the steering wheel.

"Does that really pass the time when you're bored Auntie?" Safiya questions.

"No, but it keeps me going…" Terri sighs dejectedly before rubbing her now irritated eyes.

There's nothing more annoying than others watching you rub your eyes, especially when you wear glasses. It's like they're thinking, how're you getting stuff in your eyes? **You're** the one with the glasses…?

…Idiots…

In any case, what's bugging Terri isn't an eyelash or straining herself, it's just some nasty tint of light-blue flashing in the corner of her eyes…

"Auntie, are you okay?" Safiya questions.

The eight-year-old repeats her question when her guardian chooses to look towards the equally busy sidewalk over answering. Since she hears her say something like "May", Safiya innocently answers, "But Auntie, its October."

Because Jeanne pulls her longtime friend's cheek, Terri snaps back to attention and instantly realizes the reason for this punishment. Completely oblivious to her growingly noisy surroundings, Terri turns to Safiya who quietly points out they can move now.

_Hah… well, with Safiya around I'm still trying to get used to the concept that I can't lose myself in thought like I used to… Not like that's exactly a wise thing to do in the middle of a busy street anyway…_

_Still, when looking back, I almost welcomed the idea of getting a headache… It's been quite sometime since **she's **been in school after all…_

--

(Flashback)

"So, this is it, huh?" Teri Rosen questioned as she opened a box full of medical supplies.

After she sorted the contents, the plain woman gave little expression to the twenty other boxes lying around and, as if she wanted an explanation, turned to a muscular man with a flattop hairstyle wearing nothing but a white T-shirt, red sweatpants along with beat-up white sneakers and a whistle on a string he wore like a necklace.

"T-to be honest…The shipment was a tad sudden… But since we lacked an actual full-time medial aide in years, we really had to make sure the only one willing to take the job got the five-star treatment." The man answered hastily. He coughed abruptly when Terri began piling two boxes. "In any case Ms. Rosen… How 'bout I give you a hand with the lugging? We staff members need to look out for one another, like a tight-nit team against the opposition."

"More hands lessen the time but I have no problem making multiple trips." Terri reasoned before she added: "It's just Jeanne is the impatient one between us."

The man's eyes bulged out of his head when he watched the Jynx haul five of the larger boxes out of the room.

"W-well, I can't match **that** kind of muscle!" he laughed nervously. "But, at least allow me to escort you there. Things can get pretty ugly around this hour when the **hot-blood curse** rises to full pressure."

"Curse you say?" Terri voiced.

_Maybe I exaggerated my wanting to come to Violet… Though the city of history it pales in comparison to Goldenrod, the city of the new-age sun or Ecruteak, the city of scared ash. But the mission of a journalist is to uncover the reality around us and provide inquiring minds with factual proof to why events occur._

_This is why I chose Violet; not just because I already land a job before actually arriving there, but, though a place flowing with credited history, a lot of that said history comes from the said blinding level of spiritualism inhabitants of this place is said to share with the "beyond"._

_Seriously, curses…superstitions, old folklore! People only fall back on such beliefs because they lack a realistic answer for things that confound them! Such beliefs lead only to blind fear and that only shapes ignorance!_

As his wish had finally been granted, the man overcame his nervousness to bask in the attention the new school nurse gave him.

"Ye-yeah, I kinda forgot, you're still new here…" he began coolly. "Well, believe it or not, Violet's most powerful, if not only remaining healer suddenly went nuts and out of the bitterness in her heart, hexed the children of Violet by making them hosts and reenact the savage events from "The War of Gaps" period that happened centuries ago. Or so most rumors say…" he remised. "If it were the vengeful souls prosecuted during the "Cleansing Uprising" that actually happened in Violet a little over five hundred years ago I would've tipped my whistle to it and sure, Lynette Hiromi has a strong soul but, that other story goes over-"

As he was lost in thought, he snapped back to attention when Terri voiced: "Oh come on, do you really expect me to believe that. I mean, not even today's preschooler would buy that nonsense. Are you going to tell me luck is suddenly the determining factor of skill and the reality that lottery's are just deliberately isolated handpicked scams?"

While the flirt in him wanted to laugh and agree, the man instead sweatdropped as Terri adjusted her glasses rather calmly despite the two boxes she once held were now crushing her toes.

Ignoring how and when that result came to be, he instead tried to ask if she was okay only to be silenced-

_Before Safiya came into my life, it was just one disillusion after another. I was pretty dull and unnoticeable back then and I wasn't really the most appreciated due to my stance on… well, almost everything Violet stood for… Guess I deserved it…_

_Though I'm **still** trying to get on the good-side of the bulk of my staff, Coach Kazuma has always been the most polite to me and still is. Such an odd fellow in this day and age… _

It wasn't Terri's inching closer out of suspicion that silenced him, although she smells quite nice… It was more the reality that most people living in cities like Violet and Ecruteak are all bound to the ideas of tradition and due to their strong faith (and possible family branches) it shouldn't be surprising if their actions seems "cold" to an ignorant outsider.

With that said, it could explain why the man got so pale around the minuscule spirits circling Terri who, though lacked strength, could become quite mischievous if attached to one with plenty of negative energy…

"Be strong, Ms. Rosen!" he urged, placing two comforting hands on his interests shoulders before handing a phone card to a local cleaner and rushing off.

(Some time later)

It was more of a trial than they expected, but together Terri and Jeanne lugged the final two boxes of nursing goods to their office. All what needed to be done now was setting it all up and removing the student who stood in the cluttered office in awe.

The poor kid probably heard of a new nurse and rushed over to grab some bandages only to meet a forest of boxes, Terri figured. However rather than relieving a child of their fears, Terri and Jeanne sweatdrop when the girl, whose most distinguished features happened to be her long bangs, turned to them proudly with crossed arms.

_And three days into my move to Violet and my new job, I met May Hiromi._

_I never thought much of May when we first met. She seemed like just another lost cause crying out for attention because her parents had no time for her. Just in her case, she seemed to be a lost cause that was the key target of every other worthless punk in the school. _

"And… Is there anything I can do for you?" Terri began.

"Not you really, this office though… I never saw it open before. Kinda interesting don't ya say?" May answered, giving a sharp-toothed grin that made Terri shudder.

"…Riiiight…" Terri voiced. "Well, now that you got your after-school thrill, mind getting out? The nurse's office won't be open until tomorrow, so I'm sure you can lick your catfight wounds elsewhere until then."

"I can get wounded in a fight? Not against the weaklings here anyway." May countered. "That is, unless **you** wish to prove that? Never dealt with something as worthless as an adult though."

Did that brat just call **her** worthless? Wait, why was she stressed about that? This kid was nuts! Terri wanted to call her bluff but as that girl voiced: "So, shall we begin?" she could only back away.

Though still holding her boxes, Jeanne stood in May's path threateningly. Something that seemed to amuse the girl.

"You want to fight me too? Hmhmhm, how interesting. Then I'll you carry away first." May grinned. "But you don't look very strong… Are you really a Pokemon? This should be fun anyway."

Jeanne didn't see enjoyment in being threatened. The humanshape Pokemon emphasized this by blowing a light breathe that covered the box she held in a sheet of ice.

_I knew those kids were bad but I was pretty scared right there! Granted though, May's changed considerably compared to then…_

_Back then, she acted as if she was invincible as if picking fights with others no matter who they were gave her some kind of meaning. Then again, I witnessed what she's capable of a few times and I'd be pretty arrogant too knowing I had that monstrous strength. _

_But recently, she's been so depressed. Maybe she's been humbled, but I can't gather any solid proof to this. All I do know is she's calmer, a lot less talkative, visits me with far more cuts and bruises and moreover, treats what she claimed to love more than anything as a failed hope that she now must live with and does so grudgingly…_

_I can't help but sympathize in some forms…_

Terri was nervous but there was something in the girl's words that made her see the difference between a dangerous punk and a punk that talked too much.

"Don't be stupid! As if a human, nonetheless a little kid can go hand to hand with a Pokemon!" Terri snapped. "Now tell me what you want or I'll call security!"

Though Jeanne kept her stance, May turned to the woman somewhat surprised.

"You're really a miserable person aren't 'cha?" she huffed before proudly crossing her arms. "How about I cut ya a deal? I use this place to rest and I'll blow away all your bad luck."

Jeanne sweatdropped. This will only end with her longtime friend adjusting her glasses and going raging-skeptic on them…

"Luck? You're going to get rid of all my "bad luck"?" Terri began as Jeanne expected. "And what proof do you have that this "luck" is a possible factor to anything around us, hm? If you were simply trying to ditch class that's one thing, but to pull up- You know what? Do what you want! It's your life after all."

"That it is," May yawned. "Well, you're pretty interesting, so I plan on watching you two anyway. Have everything ready by tomorrow then, I'm off."

Terri watched the girl walk off in exasperation but felt a headache when she voiced: "You should be lucky, you're luck has doubled by cooperating with me" as the lingering breeze she made when passing by wouldn't leave her side.

"You think my misery is funny don't you, Jeanne?" Terri groaned to which Jeanne the Jynx shrugged off good-naturedly.

_Luck, such nonsense… But in any case, since then, May would grace me with her appearance every now and then. And of course, I got headaches… _

_Although my relationship with others somehow got better though, and I met Safiya sometime later… _

_Lucky huh? Hah…But that's all dust in the breeze now anyway…_

(End Flashback)

--

(Present time: Kageyama Junior High)

"Hmm… If you're suffering from anything its examination jitters." Terri reasons with a student. "You should just get the test over with, you'll have to take it in the long run or just fail the year."

The student moans about it, but he walks out the room to take the test he blew off twice before.

Terri turns to Jeanne the Jynx with a smile before throwing herself into her chair.

Both were set to a motion of surprise when that same student returned, only this time, he has a strained expression when holding the door.

"THEY GOT HIM!" he shouts. As Terri and Jeanne's only response was blank blinking, he put better emphasis on his words. "Ted and his gang got Ryan!"

At this point, three boys burst into the room with the boys on the left and right hastily carrying the bloodied and bruised boy in the center towards the sick bed.

"Please help him!" the boy on the left pleads.

"Help him? That's why I'm here… Jeanne!"

The Jynx quickly gets to work, grabbing the needed clean cloths while using Powder Snow at its lowest frequency to moisten them. Leaving Terri to simply receive them and do what she could to halt further problems.

_It's not like such a sight is out of the norm… From my research, Kageyama Junior High is a low-budget military school that was originally created to be a fighter's paradise for youths worldwide that performed or held interest in various forms of fighting styles and wished to become stronger yet still not lose focus of themselves or the true world around them._

_The plan was scrapped out of the fear many living around the area held about such "dangerous" children running around. I also hear there was some foul-play involving the school's Principal, but I've yet to confirm this…_

_Now, what would've been a journalists paradise and a another proud mark to Violet, has become a home to_ _a lot of the kids who are either delinquents or children who couldn't afford to go to the better schools in Violet. _

_A hell where only the strong live and the weak are preyed on…_

"DON'T CALL THE HOSPITAL!" the boy on the right shouts before lowering his tone. "Just do all you can to help Ryan but don't call that place…"

"School nurses aren't stationed for severe-level matters!" Terri snaps. "The most I can do here is stop the wounds from worsening **and** call for people who can save him and well as his concerned family!"

"That's why we're begging you to put your fullest effort!" the boy on the left counters. "Ryan is a good guy who doesn't get himself involved in any fights or nothing! He always keeps to himself and was one of the only few guys who had his head on his shoulders… But those bastards! Those low-life bastards still-"

"They only targeted him because kids like Hiromi are getting booted out of school! With them gone, retards like Ted think they can rule…" the boy who skipped his test comments.

"That's why you can't call the hospital because his parents will just freak and transfer him out of Kageyama!" the boy on the right adds angrily. "It's not like it'll do 'em any good! The same shit happens all over and even worse so! Why should guys like Ryan suffer when its assholes like Ted who need to **fucking die!**"

The venom in the boy's voice really set Terri aback. Jeanne fixes this problem by forcing a Sweet Kiss on the raged youth, successfully placing him under the sandman's spell.

Terri mutters a small apology to the remaining boys as she picks up the phone…

_However, this problem seems to go far outside one problem school. In Violet City, all youths within middle and high schools are being consumed by uncontrollable rage; feeling brutal violence is the only resolution to everything…_

_Many brush this combative behavior off as nothing more than mere youth rebellion until the increase of irrational behavior, not to mention the number of children doing so forced everyone to fear the worse. They even dubbed this epidemic: **The hot-blood curse**…_

_…Proof in the pudding about ignorance… Nevertheless, the actions going on ARE painful to see and it's even worse when I know there's only so much I can do…_

_For the first time since high school, I'm able to reflect and contrast the eyes and hearts of others openly… More importantly, just afraid that Safiya will become consumed like them… or worse off, their victim…_

_For that reason alone I'll need to head for the claimed source to all this damage and confirm this how only a journalist can._

--

(Much later that day: Hiromi Household)

"Safiya is such a sweetheart!" Mrs. Hiromi smiles.

_I feel as if I'm abusing a newfound friendship, but this woman, Lynette Hiromi, is rumored to be the "enchantress" responsible for placing a "curse" on her fellow Violets for some kind of unknown revenge. _

_Using her daughter, which is revealed by an anonymous source to really be a demon taking young human skin (possibly a human sacrifice was needed), to be the vessel needed to spread the curse two years ago. Area of the starting point has yet to be revealed…_

_…This has got to be the largest amount of bull I ever heard! But I'm not just doing this as a journalist; I'm doing this for the future of children like Safiya! _

Mrs. Hiromi takes her time going through a few more collected photos before facing Terri with a nostalgic look. "May was quite adorable herself when she was small… a bit sassy, but that only amplified the cuteness. But are you sure this is alright?" she questions. "I mean, those after school programs must be done by now."

Terri shakes her head. "It's alright, the friend I mentioned to you the other day, Jeanne, picks up Safiya while I'm at the Café. It's my day off today but I guess we're both a little too used to the routine…"

Seeing the apologetic expression on Mrs. Hiromi's face, Terri realizes changing the subject would be a heck of lot easier than placing her foot in her mouth. "Umm… you and May…You two are really interesting together, at least that's the vibe I felt when I watched you two chatting that day…"

Mrs. Hiromi's eyes downcast to her coffee mug after that comment making Terri wish she simply went with trying to put her foot in her mouth.

Terri removes herself from her seat, facing the silent Mrs. Hiromi with a guilty expression.

_I wish there was another way but, I'll get to the bottom of this even if I must use others! I would've had no problem doing this back in the beginning!_

_But…_

"I… This morning- Tch! I'm very sorry for not revealing that sooner! B-but as a member of school staff I'm very curious to know about May's whereabouts! But I'm equally happy I accepted your invitation from the other day-" Terri bit the bottom of her lip before finishing. "So thank you having me!"

"Shouldn't I be the teary-eyed one? I'm as much a failure of a host as I am a person… "

Terri wasn't expecting her to actually say anything. This act alone left her frozen in in place.

However that freeze eventually thaws when Mrs. Hiromi adds, "Still, you've done this wicked enchantress a great service at the chance of human contact outside her evil incarnate creation… I thank you for caring for her in school as well…"

Terri Rosen isn't one to let a cynic get to her. But when that cynic tries to imply some gibberish of the paranormal…

…Well, her glasses need some adjustment…

--

(Elsewhere: Violet Streets)

Jeanne the Jynx makes her way through the familiar area; completely oblivious to the spontaneous outbreak of dancing from the people she passes. Eventually, the humanshape Pokemon notices the ever familiar sight of a large open gate revealing many buildings within its contents.

However, that familiar place of destination lies on the opposite side of the street…

Without any further thought, Jeanne hastily makes her way across, completely oblivious to the cars that have to make forceful halts to let her by.

This doesn't sit well with one driver, whose vehicle is closest to running Jeanne over; due to the morning traffic jam his carpool no longer trust him at the wheel, was placed with heavy fines, late for work and docked pay he needed!

Now, to make an already crappy day worse, this stupid **kid** runs in the middle of the street, deliberately stops in front of his car forcing him to hit his breaks triggering that hunk of metals oversensitive "safety" functions!

There's going to be hell to pay and he proves this by storming out his car ready to give the still child the scolding of their life! Rather than see a near crying child, he comes face-to-face with a seething Jynx.

All who were close enough to the area now witness the one-sided fight between the furious Jeanne and the no longer disgruntled man… Many were pretty sure Jynxs should Double Slap their foe rather than pummel them with their fists- No, wait! It was brief, but she just threw a rapid one!

"Oh Jeanne!" a female calls out.

Hearing the familiarity of the welcoming voice, Jeanne gives her opponent one final punch before finally making her way to the gate.

"You just missed her; Safiya went off with her friends saying she'll be going home by herself today."

Seeing the worried expression on the Jeanne's face, the security guard of West Violet Elementary begins to second guess her choice…

--

Once a nameless Route, this lush flatland now serves the residents of Violet City as an excellent park to bring their children. It's also gives a beautiful far-off view of the higher areas of the well-known Sprout Tower.

"You guys weren't joking! Sprout Tower looks amazing during a sunset!" Safiya exclaims to her two friends.

"Mr. Stuffums thinks so too." Safiya's friend with long black hair adds in a cute yet mousey voice says. She then points to Safiya's Teddiursa, who treated Safiya's other friend; a girl with messy blond hair as a post to climb on and view.

It's fair to say, the blond isn't too pleased about that.

"The only reason we're here now is because you were a no show this morning Safiya!" the blond girl argues. She then lowers to a more worried expression. "We should just forget the castle today and head home! My sister said it best herself: "When the sun begins to set the hot-blood curse takes its greatest manifestation!""

"You scared?" the black-haired girl teases.

"They're big kids!" the blond argues. "Some of them teenagers like my sister and she's scary when she's mad!! The worst of them is a middle school kid known as the Devil-Girl! She has horns hidden as weird looking hair, has dripping sharp fangs and likes to eat small super cute Pokemon!"

After hearing that, Mr. Stuffums the Teddiursa pales. The Pokemon leaps from his spot gesturing to the trio to move to another (if not safer) location.

The blond feels relief that someone takes her warnings to heart. Not like the other two, who hold deep skepticism over the matter. As the girl with long black-hair isn't the type to budge when she wants something, the blond knows her open pigtailed friend would never let her down!

"Dunno… I suppose if Pokemon exist in the world then things like devils can too." Safiya reasons before facing the blond with a huge toothed-grin. "But if Megumi is scared, Safi will hold her hand to wash all the troubles away."

While Mr. Stuffums and the girl with black hair find amusement in this, the humiliated blond known as Megumi pulls at Safiya's cheeks.

_Hi! My name Safiya. I'm an ordinary third grader who never had a stable home until I finally began living under the roof of my guardian. Auntie Terri is a very eccentric woman but I love her very much! The same would go for Jeanne, Terri's roommate and longtime friend, whose fun to be around._

_Jeanne isn't exactly normal, she isn't even human! She's actually one of the many species of magical creatures called Pokemon. Even though Auntie Terri doesn't think much of magic and ghosts, Pokemon exist alongside us as our closest friends and as this planet's protectors for as long as time could tell!!_

_But I'll easily admit there as much bad Pokemon out there as there are cruel people…_

_You see Mr. Stuffums? He was beaten to an inch of his life by a cruel Pokemon. If me and the two girls I'm with, Naomi and Megumi, didn't wander off during the class trip to Ruins of the Alph to get him help, things would have ended sadly for him._

_After that, we all started to slowly talk to each other and finally become friends. Though, I'm not sure if we still would've became friends due to the situation, our equal concern for Mr. Stuffums brought our hearts together to get over our fears and become strong… _

_How Pokemon can bring people together must be their greatest power!_

_Though it's kind of silly, Naomi wanted us to meet in Yuzu Park this morning to show us-**AHHH!!**_

The girl with long-black hair known as Naomi gives out a horrified cry that makes her two friends halt their prior actions to rush towards her. Adding to their confusion is a wide-eyed Mr. Stuffums who stood in his place while pointing out to the area before him.

It isn't long until Safiya and Megumi stare at the sight of the once lovely playground ravaged by reckless Pokemon battling.

"Nay-Naomi, i-is **this** what you wanted show us?!" Safiya exclaims wide-eyed.

"I told you we shouldn't have come to park!" Megumi cries.

The only answer either girl get from now shuddering Naomi is a **nasty** hissy-fit.

--

"You mean to tell me May running away from home isn't unusual?!" Terri exclaims with a freaked out expression.

"It's not like May has any other place to go or friends to turn to, so she would just roam the streets for a while until she cooled off…" Mrs. Hiromi admits. "Hah, that's what I get though… I always treated her more like a free-speaking friend, so she never really had that strong figure to feel safest with…or in my case, take seriously…"

"What are talking about? You're her mother and that counts for a lot! Had that been my mom, she would've slapped me so hard my teeth would rattle!"

"So would mine…" Mrs. Hiromi agrees. "That's why I hate her… My mother was authoritative, overbearing and incorrigible; it was her way or out the door… That's why I promised myself, if I ever have children, it would be a relationship based on love and trust, not fear and absolute rule."

Terri doesn't really care for the passive method, but sips her coffee all the same. "Mrs. Hiromi-I mean, Lynette… If I may ask… These rumors, hot-blood curse, you being a witch! We both know this all is a scapegoat to hide from the real problems! So how can you put up with living such horrible lie?"

Mrs. Hiromi is taken aback by Terri's straightforwardness but gives a hesitant little smile all the same.

--

"wh-Is this… some kind of joke?" Safiya voices.

Amongst war-torn destruction is a battered and bruised May Hiromi. Though unmoving, the girl is completely bound to a sandbox by vines which root itself to the ground.

Though all of the onlookers are in a state of shock, Megumi exhibits the most. Whimpering lightly, the blond latches her hands onto Safiya's right hand tightly not even realizing she crumples to her knees.

The trio watches the crying girl shake like a leaf, trying to speak but only generates greater feelings of uneasiness in the process.

On the verge of tears herself, Naomi's confusion turns into frustration as she turns to the crying blond shouting "**SPIT IT OUT!!**"

"It's her!" Megumi blurts out! "The Pokemon eating Devil-Girl!!"

Safiya, Naomi and Mr. Stuffums feel as if everything in their systems stops when they slowly face the bound May.

'This is…' Safiya mentally shudders. 'This is a living devil?'

The twelve-year-old groans lightly, lifting her head slowly to reveal a lifeless expression.

**To be continued…**

--

(Notes)

**08/17/07 Update****- **Was hoping I'd release all the **Chapter 0 **tense changes at once. Oh well. Well, like Part A before it, I edited this chapter in terms of tenses and wordiness.

Also, (though this shouldn't bother newer readers) three scenes have been removed from the original version: The first was the part in the beginning, which was a repeat of the events at the Café before fully branching out to be in Mrs. Hiromi and Terri's perspective. Though not a bad scene it was… unfinished (or missing something in-between). I never realized this until getting around rereading **Chapter 0 **a couple of months back.

The second removal was Terri actually going to her second job to see the Café vandalized and talks to the owner centering on the hot-blood curse and Mrs. Hiromi. I removed this scene as I felt it was kinda needless and possibly too cruel. Though it held a nice discussion centering on human ignorance and hypocrisy I said "Isn't that **Chapter 0 **in a nutshell?" So I ultimately removed it and in a more light-hearted approach, have Terri simply get a day off from work to visit Mrs. Hiromi as I also wanted to emphasize on her own levels of skepticism and how much she's grown as a person herself from what she described herself as.

The third removal was a flashback concerning an argument Mrs. Hiromi gets into with May after the events of Part A. It was a nice scene showing the emotion both had for the other but it was overdramatic to me and also, I emphasized pretty well already that though having a "strained" relationship of sorts, Mrs. Hiromi really does love her daughter while May does posses **some **level of respect for her mother. No need to lay that on so thick.

Also, this half is Terri's story; the reflection of a community-wide problem in the eyes of a neutral third-party.

Finally, to emphasize this truth I plain out altered the events during the scene she "sees" May (in which she leaves the car to talk to the girl. Was never too fond of how I originally handled it.) As well as the flashback which pretty much were events I written for her a side story I scrapped but found use for it here as, **this is** Terri Rosen's story.

**Fun final note****-** "The War of Gaps" is something I couldn't help but make a reference to as it's an event that carries over to the main storyline. Couldn't help but slip it in early (as it plays no real worth at the moment over someone's reasoning.) While the "Cleansing Uprising" is more or less based on real historical events involving various prosecutions and crusades made by different religions.

A touchy subject I'd rather wish to avoid.


	3. Chapter 0c

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

An hour has passed since eight-year-olds Safiya, Megumi and Naomi's encounter with the famed Hiromi Devil. Despite the uneasiness of walking out at night, Megumi and Naomi can't help but joke at how angry their families will be with them. Their conversation eventually leads to their brief meeting with a tall wild-haired junior high school girl.

The two feel being a little late is more than worth it to talk to such a polite individual. If not get to pet her Bellsprout that, in comparison to the feeble Mr. Stuffums the Teddiursa, appears to be friendly, cute AND strong.

Something the teddy bear Pokemon bitterly munches on chocolate over.

They weren't surprised when the girl behaves the way she did when claiming to have met and slightly befriend the Hiromi Devil.

But to freak out like that…

"…she looks so lonely."

The trio stop their actions to face a downcast Safiya who faces them determination.

"I want to see her, one more time!"

Her friends blink twice at this, but only Megumi chooses to act. "Why bother? Devil-Girl isn't gonna run off anywhere and even if she does, she can easily fend for herself."

Safiya ignores this and runs off with Mr. Stuffums following closely behind.

"Wah-FINE! Just don't expect me to be here waiting for you!" the blond fumes, turning to Naomi for support. "Arrgh!! She can be so thick sometimes, right?"

"Don't lump me in with you, idiot." Naomi mutters, making the blond puff her cheeks. "She'll be fine if she's with Devil-Girl, I'm just surprised Safi was the type to look at those older than her."

Megumi considers this for a moment before running in Safiya's direction, stating she wants to know what kind of meal the Devil-Girl would like for tomorrow.

Though claiming she just doesn't want to "take the heat" alone, Naomi also gives chase.

--

Full of fresh bruises, May Hiromi skids back only to be smacked by a vine that seems to be holding back greatly. The girl places both arms behind her head, pivoting her body just enough to hit the ground on her sides.

May slowly picks herself up, giving her attacker an annoyed glare.

Standing before May is a middle school girl, quite tall her age, whose most noticeable features have to be the Kageyama Junior High uniform, an official dress-code that **hardly any student **in that school took seriously. The second is her wild two-tone (believably dyed) auburn hair style that gives her an untamed feel. And the final, the fact she carries the flower Pokemon Bellsprout on her left arm.

While the Pokemon has an apologetic look, its partner looks disappointed.

"To do things so beneath you… Your reputation's already been sullied with those Violet Academy girls spreading word of your defeat at their hands! Then those kids free you from Spiegel's tomb when you could've easily done so yourself! Now-" the tall girl bit back a small curse before continuing. "Why do you keep picking yourself up if you're going to be thrown back without TRYING to fight back? This isn't like the Hiromi Devil!"

"All everyone wants is the title of devil right? Then they're welcome to it…" May counters in-between pants. "It was just a lame title given for merely warding off those who attacked-"

_To fight; Revealing strength of any form to prove your existence._

_That is on one side…_

May's words were cut short thanks to an un-timed trip to her rear when the tall girl's Bellsprout uses a vine to trip her.

"Isn't that true?" May argues. "Nobody needs a reason to hate or provoke someone! So go ahead, as long as you have some kind of proof, let whatever grudge you have end here!"

The tall girl's hair overlaps her eyes as she calls out the name of her Bellsprout.

The Bellsprout however, wouldn't budge.

_The other, using passionate words from the depths of your heart to reach out to the soul of others…_

_Tactics that only work in dreams…_

"**No! **I won't accept that Spiegel! Holding back only makes her think her gift isn't worth wielding. So please, go all out!"

Being domesticated since hatching, Bellsprout is tied down to the rule that hurting ANY human, even if they are an enemy of their master, is wrong.

Only loyalty to its caring partner got Bellsprout to attack its target earlier; it's not too sure if that alone will drive it to commit such an act again…

_Using words to reach out to others is only as good as the hearts of those you try to reach. Its effects never reveal itself until a cornered state has been reached, then the speaker is forced to become a hypocrite. _

_Or the usual scenario: The speaker gives their life…_

With the calls of its partner growing more impatient and desperate, the flower Pokemon feels itself wilting as it extends one of its vines and let it fall with great force towards May…

_Until I met a beautiful cotton-winged angel holding a giant golden ring, I valued the worth my existence over others…_

_But now I…_

…And she does nothing more than lower her head and wait for the worst…

--

** Distanced Hurricane Pilot Series**

**Cursed Wings! A Martyr Named Hiromi -Wings of Zero-**

--

_It must be a dream_, would be the first thing one would mutter when finding themselves alone in a lovely green pasture, where the sky remained blue and cotton wisped along with the playful breeze.

May Hiromi was no exception. Battered and bruised, the twelve-year-old gripped her left arm as she stood upright.

"Such a strong will to live. You must have amazing wings." A female voice commented.

Not too far from the girl stood a figure of a woman completely shrouded in light. The only objects that seem to stand out, were her cotton wings and the large ring she held in her right hand.

May struggled to keep her eyes open as the entity offered out her left hand.

"Your battles have come to an end, now please; let's enjoy the breeze with your lovely **invisible wings**…"

--

Bellsprout removes itself from its partner's arm, holding nothing but deep shame.

Way too dramatic, the tall girl figures. After all, the Hiromi Devil would never-

From the clearing dust the tall girl eyes widen at the realization of not only her trusted partner missing its mark, but the target remaining in place.

Tears trickles endlessly from the tall girl's widen eyes until not even a drop could be seen.

"**YOU FOOL! **DO YOU REALLY THINK OTHERS WILL BE SATSIFIED WITH JUST BEATING YOU?" she shouts. "THEY'LL COME AFTER YOU UNTIL THEY UTTERLY ANNHILATE YOU!"

The tall girl falls to her knees, screaming out deep disappointment for May with a fresh batch of tears rolling down her cheeks.

"…It's all so lame; having to grow up automatically labeled with the rules and hidden biases that adults claim as law… Even the slightest imbalance drives them to the brink. Just like when you and the enchantress revealed yourselves."

May flinches after hearing that comment. Not that the tall girl noticed, she simply wipes her tears. "It's fair enough if you feel frustrated with our weakness… It really should be… but… Why does my heart sting so much- I never even tried to talk to you- I'm such a… I just didn't…"

The girl breaks into loud sobs that neither Bellsprout nor May especially try to calm.

--

(Five years ago)

_That's right…_

_When others see the Hiromi Devil, they see something they deeply desire… _

_Not like the mark that makes me…_

_Even when I was young, I was always a little taller than most of the kids my age. Mom always said my long legs were a gift that claimed great beauty to come, but…_

"No Miki, you are incorrect, **again!** Do you even **try** to study before you come to school?! Please sit down!" The teacher scolded.

This left the classroom in a barrel of snickers.

"Is she really a third grader? She's so tall!" a boy whispered to his two friends. The other boy shook his head. "No way, she's just got held back a few times and is trying to lie about her age!"

The girl known as Miki stood pensively while the two boys continued to crack jokes.

--

"Yahh! You oaf! You completely ruined the formation! We were trying to be nice by letting you jump rope with us, now we should count our blessing we made it to the next round!" a girl screamed.

"I-I'm sorry, I'm not too good at jump rope so this is triple step trick is a little…"

"Geez, if you stay on our team we'll never win this thing! Just fake sick tomorrow and stay out of our way!"

The girl and her friends gave young Miki dirty looks before they walked about their business; this left the girl alone once again.

_To people like Mom, these types only acted intimated to hide some kind of hidden jealousy. Well, that's what __**she**__ said anyway…_

(Four years later)

"Ms. Yesinia, another perfect score! You have a great head on your shoulders!" The teacher hailed before he addressed the rest of the class. "I know its quite a long shot for most of you, but don't be too quick to throw away your life for Pokemon training and its false luxuries and follow Ms. Yesinia's example!"

Miki Yesinia. A name students of class 7-B have heard through roll call, but never gave a thought afterwards. For the first time, those youths turned to face the surprisingly tall girl of background.

_Come the start of Junior High, all I did was keep to myself and focus on nothing but studies. But still, it really did feel as if I was in a different world…_

Miki walked down the halls only to stop and read a flyer that caught her eye.

"Hey is that Yesinia?" one boy questioned his two friends. "She's way too quiet! Had not been for that height of hers, I'd never notice her."

"So what? She's just submissive and that's **hot!**" his friend replied. "Just look at those legs! It's like she wears the school uniform just to taunt us!"

"Forget it; she's way out of your league." Said the final boy. "Tall chicks bug the hell outta me anyway."

The boys look away when they noticed Miki frowning. As much as she wanted to confront them, she took the resolve of turning away.

Crashing into one of the most appealing girls in school shortly after…

Miki apologized quickly and helped the girl up, earning gratitude and an offer of friendship from the girl and her friends.

As she suddenly lost the ability to speak, Miki nodded furiously before she ran around the corner to catch her breath.

That moment of happiness was short-lived…

"Hmph, she's so stuck-up." The girl muttered to her friends. One of her groupies nod. "And you want to her to join us? Easy A or not, I don't want that giant near me."

"She's just showing off her long legs by wearing the uniform. And guys still aren't tired of seeing them?" another girl commented to which they all agreed.

_It all seemed different, but the scenario was still the same… _

_My height! No matter how hard I tried to work around it that was the first thing others saw!_

_My family's Bellsprout was the only thing that saved me from pure loneliness… But then during the start of this school year, something happened! _

Miki stood in terror as she watched four members of Ted's gang get pummeled by a girl with long, oddly styled bangs in Kageyama uniform.

Even though she held her own for quite some time, it was still a four-on-one… Miki felt some of her own adrenaline pumping from the scene but came to realize, just a while back these four were invading HER personal space.

It wasn't long until the thugs fled, vowing to fight another day. Not that Miki paid them any mind; her attention was fixated on the back of her battle scarred savior and how noble she appeared by simply watching her rivals flee.

_I only heard of her through rumors, but the description fit perfectly: The Hiromi Devil really did go to our school! _

_And she protected me! _

_…Well… she actually beat them up because they deliberately spilled grape juice on her shirt… But she DID come in at a crucial point!_

_It wasn't how I always dreamed it, but, from that moment on, she became my knight in shining armor!_

(A few days later)

Miki kept her eyes locked on her desk. All the others did since the start of class was look her way and chatter between themselves. Even the teacher looked her way in disgust!

She wanted to run away-

"Poor Miki, having to sit next to the Hiromi Devil like that… She's too pure!"

"Hah, the fact she hasn't begged the teacher to change seats is what shocks me. If class size is what bothers her, there's always my lap."

"Can we forget about **her** for a minute and realize the devil girl is actually wearing the school uniform! And that hair!"

"Y'know, I've been hearing rumors that say that's not really hair…"

Miki snapped out of her trance the moment she heard the sound of a chair pulling to her left. She quickly went wide-eyed when meeting the frequent no-show assigned to that vacant desk.

"Ah, Ms. Hiromi you actually came to class," the teacher greeted dryly. "And in school uniform no less. Had I known better, I'd actually say education meant something you."

The teacher showed frustration when May seemed to give the idea of pulling the books out of her backpack higher notice than his words.

Miki couldn't help but smile at that.

_That's how the whole day went, everyone behaved so critically around her, but none of it mattered to her. It was like she had the power to close herself from the world and still exist._

_She was seriously amazing… I wanted nothing more than to get closer to her and become her follower…_

Half the day didn't even come to pass, but this didn't stop a rather annoyed May from making her way towards the school exit. Not even paying attention to Miki who stood by door struggling to speak.

…_But I was far too nervous! Aside from having a knack for fighting, it was proven she has little trust for others, especially adults._

_I found that honest, even though I couldn't see us becoming acquainted, I still continued to support her from afar…_

(End Flashback)

--

Safiya and her friends find themselves unable to say a thing about the scene before them. As much as they want to brave the danger and approach the injured May, awkward feelings of misplacement prevent that.

"You… don't seem like those who just want to utterly _annihilate_ me but you still used me as the stepping stone to make your existence known…" May rebukes. "You shouldn't cry over that. I mean, nobody really wants that empty feeling of being unwanted, it's the closest thing to being dead. That's why people try so hard to create bonds with others, receiving results as superficial as their reasoning… But for most, that method is impossible…"

Miki wipes her tears, taking note of the rather serious expression Bellsprout holds as it readies for combat. At the same time, Mr. Stuffums fights back his lost primal urges to simply grit his teeth.

The situation gets worse as May reveals a dark expression to her attackers that thickens an already tense atmosphere.

"The days of fighting you wish to relive so badly ended centuries ago. The devil you treat like that empty to goal to be Master Pokemon Trainer is nothing but a lost existence left to wander aimlessly…"

May slowly picks herself up. Holding her hurt left arm, she approaches Miki.

No matter how domesticated it is, corrosive acid drips from Bellsprout's mouth as the girl nears. This feeling only buffers when May sends a strong glare its way.

The flower Pokemon backs down when Miki unconsciously pats him. Allowing May to bend down in front of Miki, take her free hand place it on her left bang and squeeze it.

"You are the one to beat the blood-lusting fighting demon completely. You are now a living legend." May replies to Miki's awe.

"Safiya get a hold of yourself!" the familiar voice of Megumi shouts.

May pulls away from the star-struck tall girl to witness the blond, her black-haired friend and the teddy bear Pokemon comfort the talkative pigtailed girl who's on the verge of collapsing if not been for the blond.

"Mommy…" Safiya sniffles, leaving Megumi to grow awkward.

The feelings of bizarre flattery were shortly replaced by shock when the light in Safiya's eyes is replaced by sorrow.

"…Because Mommy said she loves Safi with all her heart, Safi never questioned the outside world…" Safiya mummers as sudden images of a little girl holding a teddy bear played in her head.

In those images, that girl stood in front of a door while she watched a woman slowly walk away. The child murmured something that made the woman turn to her with a saddened gaze. With tears running down her cheeks she mouthed something that made the little girl fall downcast…

"Safi could never understand why Mommy left her behind…"

The second set of images took place in a playground where that same girl hugged her legs as she overheard a few children talk about her. They pointed her out as a pity-baby who everyone is just being nice with because her mommy and daddy hated her.

And made it known not to go near her…

"Is so… Even if she wanted… Mommy couldn't love Safi… Safi!"

The light in the pigtailed girl's eyes completely fades, leaving an endless flow of tears running down her cheeks.

"What are you saying?! This isn't like you at all Safiya!" Megumi argues, holding back her own willingness to cry.

Naomi places both her hands on Safiya's shoulders. "You're probably stressed out from all the events. The devil girl has everything settled so we should-"

"Are you still thinking about that?" Megumi shouts. "I may not know as much about Safiya, but I definitely know that she's under Devil Girl's influence! It's always her doing! That's why everyone has to cry when she mentioned! Because she's a cruel person who loves others suffering… **She thinks of no one but herself!**"

Naomi glares at the girl angrily for that comment. However, no further action is made when both girls and Mr. Stuffums turn to sounds of vines whiffing and slamming about.

Only to see the much debated Hiromi Devil pinned against a fence, using her hands to prevent the no longer indecisive Bellsprout's vines from completely wrapping around her neck.

"…what do you want?" May growls.

"I…I never had the courage to speak to you, you know." Miki mutters. "I don't care for the respect of others, all I want is you at your best and nothing but that! That's why I deny your title and want you to continue being you! So hurry!" she rushes. "Free yourself from Spiegel's grip and pummel me! Fight me and reclaim glorious pride!"

"…No, I don't want it."

The grip of Bellsprout's vines tighten as it swung May to the side, allowing the girl to tumble and roll until she skids back a few more feet on her front.

It takes a bit of time, but the girl shows signs of recovery.

_I'm still conscious somehow… That thing isn't like its earlier self… _

_To protect its human master's sanity, it lost itself to fully perceive me as a mortal enemy…_

The way Bellsprout sways itself even unnerves Miki.

_Regardless, I can't be done in… I!_

_"Be it through your fist or your powerful words, everything fueling those actions come straight from the colors reflected in your heart… Don't hide that, control them."_ The voice of the cotton-winged entity advices in May's heart. And along with the voice, she acknowledges the saying.

Battered, bruised and slightly bleeding, May uses everything she has to pull herself to her knees. Struggling to find any inner reserves to get on her feet, the words of Megumi soon plays itself in her mind.

This is shortly followed by Miki's reasoning, and then Safiya's words and finally, the many heartfelt words of Mrs. Hiromi. May cries out in pain, grabbing her badly injured left arm as she fell back to the ground.

All May could do is watch from the corner of her eyes as Bellsprout extracts its vines.

"STOP! SHE'S A HUMAN!" Naomi shouts.

Dust continues to rise as the vine attacks grew more untamed and wild. Even with Miki shouting at it, Bellsprout doesn't stop its actions until that ill-feeling rising within calms.

Finally done, the dust clears just enough to reveal a badly injured May lying motionlessly on her back.

Needless to say, the reactions were on that of fear and shock.

Bellsprout turns away from its partner shamefully, but knew she would understand eventually…

On their corner, Mr. Stuffums the Teddiursa watch the felled girl not knowing what to feel other than uneasy due to the sudden bitter taste in the air. Then he hears Megumi shakily voice: "The Devil Girl needed to be punished. But that went too far…That was too far!"

The blond nervously turns to the usually composed Naomi only to see her shaking like a leaf. "…I… want to go home now…" she barely whispers.

Desperate, Megumi now looks towards the usually cowardly Mr. Stuffums who looks far from cuddly and hungry considering Safiya's condition.

With all of her friend's broken, Megumi, the one who'll usually cry at the drop of a bat, feels no tears despite her feelings. The fear is there but what she feels more though is-

Despite all the rising tension, the felled May stares at the sky with feelings of nostalgia.

_It has been quite a while since I found myself in such a predicament. Kuugh! Even after all this, something inside me clings onto consciousness so desperately…_

_I suppose I was never really one who gets it easy…_

_…But just this once, is it okay to rest, even a little?_

--

(Earlier…)

"It's her!" Megumi screamed! "The Pokemon eating Devil Girl!!"

Safiya, Naomi and Mr. Stuffums felt as if everything in their systems just stopped when they slowly turned to face the bound May.

'This is…' Safiya mentally shuddered. 'This is a living devil?'

May groaned lightly, lifting her head slowly to reveal a lifeless expression.

"Sh-**shut up!** Get up and stop crying! She's tied up so she couldn't harm us even if she wanted to!" Naomi screamed in a cracked voice. "Don't wuss out on me either Safiya! …**I'm not joking you hear me!**"

With Safiya and even Mr. Stuffums not budging added onto Megumi's crying; feelings of fear began to overtake the usually headstrong girl.

"…Devil…? …what did I ever do to any of you to be considered that?" May muttered weakly.

Even though fear ran through all their systems, Safiya especially felt an inward shock as the twelve-year-old glared straight at her, pressing her question with a bit more in-tone impatience.

"Eh-excuse me?" Safiya muttered. "Wh-why would…"

"ANSWER!"

Her outburst successfully forced full attention; though, the coughing made from the more apparent movement of the restraining vines caught that even better.

"…I'll ask again…What gives **you **the right to call me a devil? And if I am such a big bad monster… What's going to be done?"

"The proof is right there!" Megumi sniffles. "Th-those weird parts in your hair… they're horns just like sis said!" the blond puffed her cheeks slightly. "You get anything you deserve… You're just a- Hah?!"

Megumi watched with disbelief as the silent until now Mr. Stuffums rushed towards May to furiously bite and claw at her vine confines.

May herself didn't look too pleased about the matter, but made no effort to waste energy over it.

"Mr. Stuffums… she'll eat you…" Megumi muttered.

"Well I guess that sums things up, eh Safiya?" Naomi, who pulled out some fingerless gloves from her backpack, questioned coolly.

Megumi faced her black-haired friend blankly only to quickly go into a face fault when she saw a small smile forming on the face of her pigtailed one.

Safiya claimed she'll save the kind devil before wriggling her hand free from Megumi's grip. The pigtailed eight-year-old then shuffled through her backpack for the pair of scissors she forgot to return to the teacher and ran towards May.

"Wait! She's a dangerous devil who'll hurt you!" Megumi screamed out to no avail. The blond quickly grabbed Naomi who easily pulled free.

"Stop being such a baby!" Naomi snapped. "We all know about Mr. Stuffums' special talent and he's never been wrong or gonna be that anytime soon! Don't give me that devil shit either!" she added. "Do **you** really believe that, or is it just because your sister told you think so?"

Naomi then ran off to join the group, leaving Megumi to stand alone in her own thoughts.

…She always hated the feeling of being the odd-one out. And hated loneliness even more… Her friends deemed the girl worth helping; and she, right before them, defied every practical story her ever-knowledgeable older sister ever told her… But…

With her hair overlapping her eyes, Megumi rushed over and tearfully began to pull and bite any root she could.

The blond's actions earned her friends grins and together, pulled for the claimed Hiromi Devil's freedom.

(Forty-five minutes later…)

"We're lucky, Megumi never shares her candy and she usually gets the best kinds." Naomi said.

The black-haired girl and Mr. Stuffums sat by the silent May, nibbling on Megumi's favorite brand of mini chocolates.

"Hey, the only one allowed eating MY candy is Devil Girl! So no touching and get your own!" Megumi yelled.

Naomi and Mr. Stuffums quickly popped two more chocolates into their mouths grinning. Megumi frowned at this but turned to Safiya, who stole glances at her.

"I didn't think you'd ever disobey anything your sister says. Or at most, share your candy." Safiya admitted.

Megumi face faults, but quickly recovered. "Oh please! I listen to my sister because I'm **supposed** to! She's older after all; if not…bigger and stronger…"

"I see…" Safiya murmured, hugging her legs in the process. "I'm very sorry to think so harshly of you all this time then… You really are a nice person Megumi!"

Light tints of pink overtook the blond's cheeks before they puffed at the realization of the whole sentence. She irately pulled at her friend's cheeks shortly after.

"Are all your types like that?" May voiced without realizing. The twelve-year-old quickly popped a chocolate into her mouth when all eyes faced her.

"Are you interested in Safiya too?" Naomi questioned. May continued to pop chocolates into her mouth leaving the girl to smile. "She's like that, very naïve, pretty stupid and magnetic. To be honest, Megumi and I never got along before she came along. But neither of us had many friends. I mean, how can anyone like Megumi have friends? She's such straightforward, spoiled scaredy-Mewoth."

"Yeah? Well you're a fickle Persian!" Megumi shot back. "Though I'll admit, she did bring out sides of you I never thought existed. I even learned we have a lot in common… Still, with Safiya it never mattered how much snacks I could give… or if I did at all… And now, she likes me fully, so this makes me happiest!"

Naomi, Safiya and Mr. Stuffums watched their friend brighten with a smile never thought possible and couldn't help but soften themselves.

"That's why I will never lose my precious friendship to someone like Naomi."

Safiya and Mr. Stuffums both go dot-eyed with that comment. Naomi on the other hand, lowered her head before she covered her feelings with a proud laugh.

"That's right," she agreed. "We have a lot in common but we still necessarily don't like each other. I won't lose Safiya completely to that spoiled scardy-Meowth." The girl picked herself up and proudly marched over to the blond. "I mean, why would she wanna hang around someone who's so clingy!"

An X-shaped vein pulsated on the right side of Megumi's head as she left Safiya's side to further an argument with the black-haired girl.

Safiya tried to calm them but, like always, found it a dead cause.

With a strained expression, the pigtailed girl joined her teddy bear companion and the claimed devil girl. While Mr. Stuffums greeted her with a chocolate, May paid her no mind.

"It's gotten pretty late," Safiya said, suddenly feeling awkward when she received no human response. "Um… Do you hate me for freeing you? I-I know this wasn't really my business but-"

"I really didn't have too much of a say in the matter." May answered quickly. "I wasn't going to waste precious energy struggling or telling you off, nor did you seem like one who would stop when you start something without a speech."

Safiya blinked twice but decided to slowly nibble on her chocolate.

She wasn't at all like the stories Megumi described her to be… She was-

"As for hating you, I do not." May continued curtly. "At that age, expressions speak the loudest. You're too easy to be molded but pure all the same… But you become off limits when you're older; at ten, those innocent eyes will become lecherous and self-serving… Such a sad never ending cycle…"

As she was speaking way over her head, Safiya used May's staring at the night sky to her advantage.

"Hey, when you look out into the sky like this, what do you see?"

"A sky blocked by excessive street lights making it so only the brighter stars can be seen."

Too intense, Safiya thought with a sweatdrop. As much as she wanted to strike a conversation with the older girl, the realization of the word: _Street Lights _made her jump.

"AHHHH!! It's **really **late! I completely forgot about Jeanne! She's going to be really upset with us!"

Hearing the name of the easy to anger Jynx made Mr. Stuffums drop his chocolate and go into a frenzy similar to Safiya's. It was at this moment, Naomi and Megumi's argument reached its peak resulting in both of them turning away from each other and marching towards Safiya.

Neither realizing they linked arms with the girl while storming off.

"It was nice meeting you!" Naomi snapped quickly at May. "If you're still here I'll bring you tastier food tomorrow!" Megumi added.

Safiya found struggling futile but still called out to May. "Um, hey! You really aren't going to stay here? ii-If you want, you can come to my place so you can get warm and cleaned up! My Auntie Terri is really caring and wouldn't mind you!"

May popped more chocolates into her mouth forcing to Safiya give up.

The twelve-year-old turned to see Mr. Stuffums staring her at her blankly. "You better join them, I don't want anything to do with you." She replied. "To be honest, I really hate Pokemon, they're just dirty creatures that everyone gushes over or makes their fighting slaves… They're no better than adults in that perspective…"

Mr. Stuffums continued his stare before he sighed off the matter and took a chocolate before rejoining his friends.

(End Flashback)

--

Sounds of yelling from both parties are heard.

It isn't long until May hears the cries of Safiya then Miki scolding the child before shouting "Divert!" Following this is Naomi's shouting followed by a loud crashing noise with Megumi screaming out the names of both her friends in the midst of it all.

_Those kids! I almost forgot all about them! Nghk! I wouldn't put it past them, but are they really trying to engage that lamppost-girl with that weakling they call a battle pet?_

_This is foolishness and over me? Utter foolishness!_

_There's no justified party in this, there's nothing noble in pointlessly throwing yourself into harms way over a selfish whim! _

May tries to warn the girls away but no voice is heard. When she tries to pick herself up, the strain of Bellsprout's attacks sink in.

_Gaah! You remained so persistent before body, so why quit now? Come on, move… move… _

May's view of the sky start to blur as the weight of her drained body end all hope of movement.

_I won't take responsibility for the stupidity of others! I-I won't let them do such trivial things in front of me! Arrgh! This is all so foolish, it's infuriating!_

_Move! Move! Move!! COME ON, MOVE!!_

May's eyes widen when she hears the pained cries of Mr. Stuffums and the panicked screams of his human friends and Bellsprout owner.

_…Seriously… what have I been doing all this time?_

_Freely running around as I pleased, thinking an apology to people who wanted my blood would earn me a small slap on the wrist. Giving everyone that insane allusion…_

_…Actually allowing those well-meaning girls to free me only to lay here uselessly as they hurt themselves…_

_…Hot-blood curse which drives one to the point of insane rage…_

_This… this is my fault isn't it? And even if it wasn't, I did a good job of escalating it to this point…_

_Why didn't I see these things before…I was the weak one all along…_

_Fading out like this- Sniffle I really do myself! _

_Mentally, physically and spiritually, I wish I could be stronger--I **want** to be stronger! _

_Body, for all the abuse I let you go through, I'm utterly sorry but please! **Even if it becomes my final breath, let me stop this!**_

Just when the final steps of consciousness take place, May could've sworn she saw a ball of cotton flutter by…

A heavy gust of wind pushes down on an already thick atmosphere. Sensing danger, Bellsprout turns towards the girl of destruction, shuddering at the realization she's actually picking herself up! Leaving it open to a swift, yet very weak blow from Mr. Stuffums' Scratch.

Even if the attack is petty by its standards, it's more than enough to break its inner restraints and extract its vine!

The way the vine slithers across the ground was very sluggish, almost half-hearted…

…But more than enough for a Level 8 like Mr. Stuffums to grab onto and grip tightly.

With all their wounds and sores gained from trying to stop him in the first place, Safiya and her friends could only grip their wounds and hope for the best.

"It…It's useless you know," Miki softly reasons. "While the Hiromi Devil is amazing enough to fight through her own raw power, I have to rely on the strength of Pokemon. This can't even be considered a drill for a Level 28 so why are you sticking around in things you don't understand?"

"Ah, I'm just a silly little child compared to someone older… So my ways of thinking is too small." Safiya responds honestly. "But the Devil Girl was a kind and lonely person! Much like you're a lonely person who doesn't want to do this as much as we do! I won't forgive you or anyone else for hurting her… Never!"

"I'm not a saint myself, but what you made your Pokemon do to Devil Girl went too far! I deserve every bit of scolding my friends gave me!" Megumi agrees.

"Nah, we took it too far with you too." Naomi replies coolly. The girl flinches a bit after rubbing her now swollen ankle.

Miki shows regret, but knows what must be done. "You guys are precious, but the Hiromi Devil wouldn't care if you were helping her as much if she were in my position… Spiegel, do-"

The tall girl jumps when a very bloody and battered May grabs her left wrist.

"You… None of you know a thing about me… _**Stop with these excuses!**_"

Miki winces as May's grip tightens. Bellsprout now extracts its other vine at its true force. The attack sent the instantly defeated Mr. Stuffums careening into the fence.

Much to the flower Pokemon's dismay, May doesn't take the hint. Instead, it, along with its master and the eight-year-olds are subjected to the feelings of an ill-fated rush through their systems as low growls burble from the girl.

With Miki falling to her knees from May's grip, Bellsprout struggles to find that instinct it used to strike earlier but instead, freezes when the girl of destruction glares down with wide blue eyes now in the form of feral slits.

Something that gives rush down Miki's spine.

"Those eyes… That's the mark of the Hiromi Devil's true power! …But she only reveals that form against those who are truly worthy of her full strength…I'm not…I'm not!-"

"You're mistaken; I just look like this when clingy objects invade my personal space…" May corrects.

Since Miki's too in awe at the site of a legend unfolding, May addressed Safiya and her friends. "Lick your wounds, get your pet some serious medical attention and go home. Pretending you never met me would be nice as well."

The girls blink twice at this with Megumi being the only one to act. "Just like that?! After all this, you're going to brush us off? Safiya-"

"Megumi, it's ok." Safiya cuts in. "Because of me, Mr. Stuffums and Naomi are really hurt and I must've made Jeanne and Auntie Terri go nuts with grief by now… Then there's **your** family…"

Safiya makes a comment about the Devil Girl having everything down-pat before rushing over to Mr. Stuffums side.

"Wah- FINE! Just don't start whining about not getting Devil Girl's autograph or anything!" Megumi huffs, helping the smirking Naomi to her feet.

May watches the blond and black-haired girl give her one last look before leaving. "Aren't you going to join them? It's pretty beat-up, that Pokemon." She voices to the still Safiya who jumps.

Unable to fine any excuses, it isn't long until the girl humbly lowers her head.

"I just wanted to see you again, no reason but to just talk…about anything! If I didn't do that, a lot of the trouble you and my friends went through could've avoided… I must look like an ill-mannered, spoiled brat to you…"

"…Crying about how unimportant you are when your life hasn't even started… But at the same time, strong enough to admit your flaws… With you and those other two, perhaps there's a chance this wave of children might actually grow untainted and strong. Not like my group…"

Safiya stares at the claimed Devil-Girl with flushed cheeks. Giving her a wide, tearful toothed-grin, the pigtailed girl wishes the twelve-year-old good health and hopes to cross paths again.

The matter of the short-ones is finally settled, that only left…

"I thank you for finally wising up," May addresses Miki curtly. "Interestingly enough, it's quite a shock you haven't gone irregular and tried tearing me apart the moment I reached this state."

"Wh-What are you talking about! I know it best that you'd never do anything to intentionally harm a child, I just wanted to you goad you back to your true self. But for you to go this far…"

Staring at her idol like this makes tears run down Miki's cheeks as a strong daze overtook her. "The eyes of the sinner… The gate that pierces one's soul for judgment… To actually see it with my own eyes…To be like this with you…I'm so happy…so very happy…"

With Miki lost in her own dreams, May releases her hold on the girl's wrist and let her body shudder freely. Oddly enough, she chuckles.

_Seriously, what's so great about something like me? I'm nothing short of trash! Yet there's people who actually-- And I'm actually crying?_

May wipes her tears, while images of her back in that lovely meadow begin. There, tears roll down her cheeks endlessly. No matter how much she tried to stop it, they continue to pour.

It's not long until that cotton-winged angel wraps her in a tight hug, wording something that surprises her, but willing makes those tears fall with pride.

_That's right… Had this been an earlier point in life I would've been shocked… But now, disgust isn't what I feel at all…It's-!_

Sounds of splattering liquid sizzling against the ground.

"…With your master out of the picture you don't need to hold back any longer do you?" May questions the unnerved Bellsprout.

Whatever adrenaline the flower Pokemon had left intensified when the girl revealed an expression that bordered insane.

"_**That's good, because when I'm like this I can only hold myself back for only so long! So don't fail keeping me entertained… Kill me, if you think you got what it takes, you domesticated trash!**_"

--

(Five months later)

"Eh? They **still **haven't cleared out all the debris from the east Gale Shrine?" a woman queries to her circle of four friends. "Nothing surprising, that was quite a massive explosion."

"People should just stop complaining about losing something from ancient history and be glad it didn't spread to the neighborhoods or completely damage Sprout Tower." The other woman, who covers her just-out-of-salon-done hair with a hairnet, replies. "THAT would've been a major loss."

"B-but that shrine is a key point of Falkner's family linage!" A woman a tad younger than the rest of her middle-aged acquaintances blurts before breaking into an unsure mutter. "…Though it would've been horrible if the fire consumed the whole city..."

The other four woman can't help but agree to that but find their conversation cut short by the sounds of sirens from an ambulance speeding to its destination.

"Kageyama Junior High… That place needs to get its act together." The fourth woman scoffs.

The third woman nods. "That school only makes me think of Lynette's child… I really wonder how those two are?"

"Those two are such handfuls," the first woman shrugs. "From what I hear, Lynette's child is currently staying in Mahogany Town with friends of the family, while Lynette herself went ahead to Houden or whatever it's called, to do something with their new house. Well, at least she'll be able to keep an eye on that husband of hers." She continues. "A man that handsome must be lusted over by plenty of women."

"May was **always **quite a handful, even as a little girl." The third woman chuckles, reliving the time a three-year-old May climbed up to the top of the older children's monkey bars and cried until someone got her down.

"I'm still peeved to hear that foolish girl tried to end the fighting between local gangs!" the first woman raves. "It was well-intentioned, but reality fell in fast. I hear she was found badly injured in Yuzu Park only because she was shielding some children. Otherwise, I **doubt** a Hiromi would go down."

"It was very stupid of her; Lynette needs to lower the moral standing." The second woman agrees. "I heard a rumor that in all the fighting, some of them took it within a partially refurbished temple of all places causing a gas-leak… Didn't help that a fire-Pokemon was around…" she sighs. "Such a defiling of our history… But the again… the area was already greatly defiled by the fury of those hooligans, so I guess a fire only purified the land. Also," she continues. "Many HAVE protested the modernization of ancient goods… This will just give them a good lesson."

The third woman takes time to consider what she's about to say.

"When I think of all the things that girl and Lynette put us through… I'd have to say it was like a lingering storm that you never thought would go away… But, when the sky finally clears, you can't help but miss the thrill it gave all that time."

The other women don't need to give thought about that truth.

The fourth woman of the group stares at her acquaintances in exasperation before shaking her head. She then tightens her hold on her groceries and walks off without saying a word.

Allowing them to think of her as "those" kind of people.

--

_My name is Terri Rosen. Age: Twenty-seven, native place of birth: Mahogany Town of the Johto district. My occupation: Junior High School nurse as well as waitress of the Sprout Café and Luncheon and guardian to my eight-year-old cousin of questionable background._

_To the residents of the city of Violet it feels as they were sole survivors of the end of the world and wish to rebuild anew. _

Feeling a strong need to protect anyone close to Terri, Coach Kazuma does his own hasty cleansing ceremony to remove the mischievous spirits that live off of Safiya's regrets.

As they can't see them, Safiya and Megumi laugh at the silly adult hopping around, screaming: "The spirits are trying to possses him". As she **can **see them, Naomi laughs because he's a big idiot.

_Even though gone, nothing but calm words is made about the passionate noble family, Hiromi. Or unless you don't fear a lynching: The formerly accused Hiromi Devil and vile enchantress Hiromi._

His tattered violet cloak hanging on his door's hanger, the teen willing to uncover the truth grips the odd charm he lifts off the goddess of fortune herself as he contently reads a book about constructing your own voodoo dolls in his bed.

_To the citizens of this city of history, the idea of the hot-blood curse; the crazed rage that made children within middle and high school range act out in such a berserk fashion is now treated as nothing more than an outburst of hormones from rowdy adolescents trying to get away with things they cannot within their own homes._

_And now that they wish to involve the creatures we humans deem our greatest allies in their meaningless quarrels, there will simply be laws made to counter this._

With the new curfew laws active many youths are forced to return to their home at a ridiculously early time unless escorted. Though many, including her own family, are fighting it, this doesn't bother Miki, all she does is return home after school anyway.

Besides, with Spiegel there to keep her company, there's never a dull moment. And that is so as Spiegel the Bellsprout bends and sways its body all too similar to its style of ultimate defense. Miki copies these actions perfectly but frowns when the flower Pokemon slyly spits some corrosive fluid at the wall. She can't do that after all…

Rubbing the odd gash on the flower Pokemon's head, Miki ends the flower Pokemon's enjoyable punishment to happily greet her mom, who hands her a new pair of shoes which show off her height as well as a letter from Mahogany which the mailman claims got lost in the mail.

_…Still, there are many holes in this tale that don't completely add up. Like how could a dislike for Pokemon be so intensified because of a-_

"Auntie Terri you got another letter from your penpal!" Safiya greets when entering the Rosen family apartment.

Terri places down her magazine and thanks the girl for the letter. "Hmm, that's good to hear, I almost forgot how nice small town life was." She reminisces after reading it. "Oh Safiya, did May send you a letter yet?"

The girl shakes her head. "The last letter I got said she'd be meeting her family by ship. Since she doesn't like depending on Pokemon, she refuses to send me a letter via flying-type and said she'll write me once she settles down there. I can wait!" the eight-year-old claims before grabbing Terri's hand. "C'mon! Your penpal sent us some foreign treats! Let's grab some before Jeanne and Mr. Stuffums eat them all!"

"Hmm, if you put it like that…"

_Meh, I suppose it's sometimes best to stop contemplating storms and just look out to the rainbow after it all clears._

The two head to the other room, leaving behind an article within a city-wide magazine labeled: "The Tale of Our Boiling Blood" with Terri's initials as creator.

**Distanced Hurricane Pilot: End**

--

(Author's Notes)

If writing the Prologue-esque **Chapter 0 **took me ten rewrites, and then add an additional fifteen to **Part C** alone.

It was a huge pain to write.

My main problems relied on two factors: First, it was the ambitions of each girl. Megumi and Naomi weren't truly a problem considering they, along with Safiya were supposed to be the stereotypical female trio. (Consisting of the main girl: the innocent, sweet-tempered one with a lot of inner strength and determination. The more outspoken, brash, cool-minded girl and the third is either the friendly timid/passive one or very straight-forward to the point she's a disagreeable person and is constantly at odds with the brash one.)

Safiya however, was a pain. Though I had no problem with making her innocent and cutesy, I never really intended to go any farther with her back-story other than what Terri explained in **Chapter B**. Also, as she was the one to confront May in the end, I needed her to be able to reflect with May very deeply. Thus, this leads me to creating a back-storyish situation for her.

When I looked back at it, her personality became darker-minded than intended and this became a problem. If anything, I came to note though seeing Naomi and Megumi as "close friends" Safiya, especially her attitude towards Megumi during the flashback scenario, reveals she might not even trust them enough to really open up but was openly willing to do everything in her power to converse with May who she really seemed like her type of person. This made her cheerful personality seem more exterior to me and made me feel she might really be a somewhat selfish and cold person in reality. But when I reread what little of her past I wrote, I furthered on it and kinda just let it go and stick with trying to make it all work.

Then there was Miki. She wasn't intended to be a cruel person… Ever! I felt making her the big villain (especially since her past was the first thing I really wrote when first working Part C) would not only be doing her any justice, it'd be a cheap way to end things fast and make Safiya and co. look like weak victims and May the reluctant, yet heart-of-gold-deep-down person (And neither parties are such.).

It was too easy to make Miki go "evil" at any point and I really refused to do that.

Now the second main problem was overall battle chorography. Now, I love **shounen manga **(most notably Shaman King and Dragon Ball) to a tooth. But since Bellsprout, a Pokemon that, like the rest of those 380+ critters, could kill a man without truly trying had to attack May to appease Miki and later, from his view point, defend her from being seriously hurt which meant taking May out of the picture was quite a task… without mortally wounding or killing May.

Of course, then came the (took me almost a month to write) scene concerning May trying to stand after Bellsprout's reckless ravage. No matter how much rules of shounen manga I tried to apply, the situation didn't look good in May's favor of **living** to see the main story and take role of protagonist. So that really took me some time to work around.

Overall, yeah, I actually finished (puts on party hat). I'm a little iffy about certain plot consistencies and wished I went a bit more into the curse of boiling blood. But then again… that's what the main story is for…

After a short intermission beforehand of course.

**08/17/07 Update****-** Like the two before it, Part C faced tense changes. With present being the dominant and past being used during flashbacks. Killed the wordiness, "toned down" some conversations and, unlike the other two, this part was solid from get-go. If anything, I added onto the ending to show the aftermaths of characters like the fellow in **Part A**, Miki and others. Basically giving this prologue-like event which I'd now like to consider a short story before the main event, a sense of closure I really like.

**Fun fact****-** Though I really don't think it needs any explaining, the overall theme to this chapter is the acting on the "will" to do what must be done. Even if feeling obligated to do something, the only reason we do so is because we either "will" it or give into the "will" of others. The situation in itself was a misunderstanding. If not clash of ideals.

The idea to gather the "will" to stand and fight for your vision is one that suits Pokemon rather well considering the usual premises from the games and other media adaptations.


	4. Intermission 0

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

**Intermission 0- Little Garden -Awakening Will-**

--

_I never was one to believe doing good deeds for others would ever greet good things in return._

_All I'd be doing is smiling falsely for those who secretly bare their fangs at me. Especially when it came to me… I could do everything the people here want and still be considered a vile fighting demon only infecting their children._

_That truth would never change itself no matter what I do…_

From her window, May watched as two second-tier junior high gangs let their over-swelled tensions rise in a huge street brawl.

The girl continued to watch until she heard a few people scream "BARF!" after hitting the ground. When she turned away she instantly found herself outside and in front of the combat zone.

Even though none of the remaining members on either side noticed her, the attacks towards each other grew savage. May had to step back when she watched her peers literally transform into blood-lusting demons that tore away at the others flesh.

Giving out death cries that wasn't of the mortal world.

May cringed in disgust as the two remaining demons finished each other by an impaling through the chest and biting of the neck last breath counter attacks.

When it was all said and done, demons weren't amongst those piles of dead bodies, but those of children lying in a thick puddle of their own blood were the eyes attraction. Gathering the attention of a countless mob of people.

After their cries of sorrow, they all glare May.

"Guh-**Wait! **I didn't-"

May tenses up when a strong arm grips her right bang from behind. Some voices scream something about shattering a horn, but all back off when the grabber hits the floor.

_When I really think about it, I never really enjoyed fighting. It just became something of a second nature I thought nothing of…_

Breathing heavily, May tightens her fist and faces her enemies only to display shock when the crowd of people appeared to be nothing more than red-eyed, blackish-purple gel in human shaping.

One of the gel-people extracted their arms to grab at May's wrist, leaving her to evade the three-miss attack while forcefully warding off all those who tried to lunge at her.

Eventually, the girl defeats the crowd with only a good number of bruises to call her own. Sadly, May had to repeat this process twice more when a fresh batch of foes, twice in the originals number, stormed the scene.

_…More and more, after each conflict my body aches while that hollow feeling inside me only deepens! _

Severely battered, bruised and covered in their "blood", May crushed the head of the last attacker, falling to her knees with heavy breathing.

"That's fine… just keep showing me all you're really good for…" she muttered, only to be welcomed by a countless number of raged gel-people.

May tried to clench her fist in her struggle to get up, but only winced at the numbness in her hand.

_And that second nature I was beginning to feel defined me, slowly abandoned me…_

The girl gets thrown back from a kick from a more bulky gel-person, making her feel as if she was hit by a speeding vehicle. None of the attackers even wait for her hitting the ground when they began their onslaught.

Rather than feel the agony of her foes ripping away at her, she only heard bitter death cries along with sounds of zapping.

May opens her eyes to meet a clear blue sky where cotton wisped along the playful breeze. Not trying to make sense of the situation, she used what little strength remaining to force herself up.

This would have ended in failure had not two hands, one of them holding a rather large golden ring, touched her cheeks.

"Such a strong will to live. Now I see why those heartless creatures were so aggressive…" a female voice comments.

The warmth emanating from the voice's hand made May forget her usual distrustful instincts and faced the entity calmly…

…And widen her eyes in shock.

The figure before her was that of a woman, yes, she also wore a lovely white gown… But her skin complexion, even her short curly hair, was shrouded in a strong spectrum of light.

"Your battles have come to an end, now please, let your strained spirit rest…"

The odd markings on the ring began to resonate; it wasn't long until May looked as though she never entered injury.

"Nyaa, what a beautiful child!" the entity gushed. "I'm sure your wings are the most envied!"

May blinked twice at this. Leaving the entity to pick herself up and reveal cotton wings that sparked with static. Despite the further look of surprise being expressed, the entity offers out her hand.

"Don't you enjoy your wings?" the entity asked. "With a heart as lovely as yours, you shouldn't be afraid to show them off. Just enjoy the breeze as you set yourself free."

"…Wuh-what kind of stupid question is that?" May answers uneasily. "This is a dream; it really has to be… Asking me if I have wings to fly? I must be really ill…"

The entity remained silent for a moment, continuing to face May's direction until she patted her ring against her free hand.

"Ah! I get it! You're at that point in life where you're very insecure, so insecure your benevolent heart gave you **invisible wings!** So you don't even know you have them! That really is ama-"

"You're so annoying," May cuts in. "I don't have wings or a pretty soul or whatever! So… so…STOP PRAISING ME AS IF I'M ANYTHING SPECIAL!"

"But if that's the case, then why are you shedding tears of joy?"

May questions this until she felt the heat of her tears rolling down her cheeks. No matter how much she tried to wipe her eyes or make an excuse about them, the tears continued to fall.

The tear flow only strengthened when the entity enwrapped her in a tender hug.

"My, my today's youth is in such a rush to be so grown." The entity replies, ignoring the fact May was struggling to push free. "Though they have the cool individual part down-pat, there seems to be a huge factor that makes you look like a silly, immature child…"

With tears still running down her cheeks, May stopped struggling and let the entity tighten her hold.

"Still haven't guessed it?" the entity teased. "Being mature is something _anyone_ can do, but conveying what's in your **heart** is something only the truly grown can accomplish. Be it through your fist or your powerful words, everything fueling those actions come straight from the colors reflected in your heart… Don't hide that, control them."

The entity released her hold on May, only to step back and hide her hands behind her back. "Oh! It looks like the tears stopped." She said. "Chaining down your heart with so much regret doesn't suite you. You're looking a bit refreshed though, maybe next time a smile might be along the horizon, right?"

May's only response to this was wiping any remaining tears with indifference.

--

The cheerful chirping of Pidgeys played a great role in the coloring of the wonderful afternoon scene. Though it would've been an excellent moment for children to be outside playing, May Hiromi rested soundly in bed.

Waking up in discomfort, the girl sat up, quickly takes note of the warm tears that stained her cheeks. This was followed by the realization of a covered plate of soup on her dresser…

_I was never one to complain about wishing life were more convenient. This was the world we lived in, just accept it and move on. _

…And finally, a sticky-pad note that fell from her forehead.

The ink was a little blurred but still readable:

"May,

Temperature has fallen near normal, accepted a call-in with overtime from work for you to ease when you awake. Please rest and eat lots of nutritious soup to fight the fever! Reheat for best results. Don't lose spirit!

-Mom."

"Right… I remember now…" May voiced groggily. "Rumors of a flu that brings warning of season change hit town and caught it… Acted like it was nothing and told her to bug off. Everything got hazy later on and body just got heavy… I really thought--And even after all of that…"

_Since reality never changes, is this why we dream? Yes, that must be it; I would never cry otherwise._

_But if that's the case…_

May opens her window-sill being greeted by a very refreshing breeze. She couldn't explain it, but those usual surroundings of the outside world seemed so much more, "agreeable" than usual.

_Why do I feel as if a huge burden has been lifted off my shoulders?_

Basking a bit more in the cool air, May began to think back to a situation a couple of years ago when Mrs. Hiromi was cleaning a very nasty cut on May's knee.

The girl did nothing but hold back that urge to scream and release those tears welling in her eyes, leaving Mrs. Hiromi to chuckle and say: "You shouldn't keep swallowing that, after all, crying makes your heart lighter and a light-hearted person is the only type who have the courage to spread their wings to realize their fullest dreams."

As she stared into that cloudless blue sky, even if it was for a brief moment, May actually to believe those words when her hand grasped out to snatch what it could never reach…

"Is it really that simple? Is that all that is needed?" she murmured. Her vain attempt finally ends when her stomach growls, leaving her to taste Mrs. Hiromi's nutritious, but very cold soup.

--

_It didn't happen immediately, but as days went by, dreaming became almost a deeply welcomed activity to me._

_Be it being lost in thoughts I never gave a thought to, or letting myself fall into those deep periods of slumber, a dream would somehow follow these actions._

_And in every dream, my location is always in that green pasture, that seems to shine with greater beauty each time I visit. Along with that cotton-winged angel, who would greet me every time._

Balls of cotton danced freely along the playful breeze as May enjoyed a picnic with the cotton-winged entity she's grown so used to.

The entity had her large golden ring placed close to her side as she sipped tea.

"Such a big mug; are you sure you wouldn't like tea instead?" she addressed May. "Drinking coffee at your age stops your growth."

The entity sighed and helped herself to three crackers while May continued to gulp down her drink with little concern.

"This place really is beautiful…" May voiced. "It's hard to believe I dreamt up something like this…"

The girl was taken aback when a cluster of cotton balls stop playing with the breeze and begin to hover around her.

"What's hard to believe?" the entity argued. "Of all the places I visited, I have to say the radiance this world emits makes me visit it the most."

"Makes sense, no way could I ever dream of someone like you."

The entity takes one final sip of her tea before placing it back in its holder. She then takes a small breath while staring at the sky.

"…This world really is beautiful, but it's nothing more than a well-decorated pillar in museum full of graffiti. When I really think about it, it's not the radiance of this strip of soul that draws me to it, but the fact that its unique enough to stomach four conscious beings…"

The entity jumps when May stares at her in confusion.

"M-maybe I should start from the beginning…" the entity said. "Each person is born with set characteristics that make them whole. And here, their soul reflects that mentality creating these dream zones for their spiritual consciousness to be secure when the physical consciousness rests. As the persons thoughts intensifies so does the world the soul creates, this can be enjoyable as it can be problematic."

The entity shakes her head sadly before continuing. "Watching a once sunny world turn into a place of pure malice is a painstaking one…" she continues. "The story of yours and a few others are ones that baffles and fears even the most experienced."

"Heh, you're speaking over my head, so this doesn't concern me in the least."

The balls of cotton circling May spread out while picking up speed before unleashing a strong surge of electricity that forced down a winged beast that lacked any qualifications of a Pokemon. This act startled May as much as it left her without a beverage.

"There's no doubt about it, you might be the conscious body but whatever glimmer of hope flickers, whatever trickle of doubt sways your heart, it becomes food for the ones of Ether and Aer to continue their fierce battle." The entity replies.

"Wh-what are you talking about?!" May fumes. "What battle? What consuming? It's just us and…" May gets a good look at the downed creature and spilled coffee before an X-shaped vein pulsated on the left side of her head. "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT ANYWAY?!"

"I already said it, you ARE the true consciousness of this world, but this field that seems never ending to you, is nothing but a strip of hope in a ravaged soul." The entity explains. "Though I'm pretty sure it has to do with events in the physical realm, there are a good number of **forcefully tainted **worlds that have sprouted up over the years containing a parasite-like entity that corrupts the thoughts of conscious beings… The tainted world and parasite would usually waste away with the weakened conscious being but to have two-"

"…Just answer me this… you said I had four conscious beings…"

The entity turned her face away from May. "…The third is just the cries of a deceitful creature too weak to act against the other two…"

May didn't know how to react to this until she looked out towards the horizon of her world… Viewing not a sunset in the mountains, but a once lovely sky crack and crumble… Slowly but surely, revealing a vortex rippling with red thunder.

The realization of the matter overwhelmed May so deeply she vomited. After a small recovery of bearings, small chuckling managed to escape her being.

The tears she revealed when standing however, revealed otherwise…

"So I really am some kind of monster…" May muttered. "Is this where you kill me for the sake of humanity? You had a good enough time pretending to like me, so just finish me off already! I'm only a troublesome monster after all!"

"…I won't let any harm befall you…" the entity voiced to May surprise. "A precious child like you, a lovely zone like this, I will do everything in my power to protect you!"

Though choosing to rub her eyes over voicing anything, the feelings of relief soothing May was pretty apparent.

The entity watched this with growing relief herself.

"This still feels hard to swallow… but I-" wiping the last bit of her tears, May faces the entity with determination. "Three parasites… I won't let them run around as they please with me any longer!"

"Wh-DO NOT SEEK OUT THE ONES OF ETHER OR AER!!" the entity shouted. "Though both will kill you on sight, the Ether one only wishes to consume you, while the one of Aer-"

The entity shields her face when a piercing gust of wind that shredded everything in its path circles May's body.

"So I should be an emotionless vegetable now that I know this? Didn't **you** tell me this world reflects whatever my heart truly feels without my control?" May countered. "This MY world! I'll… Only I… Will change this world under MY terms and only that! I'll make it so that no one will be confused or afraid and **everyone** is welcome to come! Even Pokemon like the one you always have hovering around you will be more than welcome to play and stay! SIMPLY BECAUSE I AND NO ONE ELSE WILL ALLOW IT!!"

The wind continues to rip through the atmosphere, intensifying just enough to reveal the wool Pokemon Mareep. The frightened creature hastily hid behind the entity until it all finally died down.

Both, entity and Mareep stared at the panting child, jumping lightly when she faces them.

"…I… I don't have wings… I'm not amazing… But! This… THIS IS WHAT I WANT! I'll morph my whole heart; this field is all you'll see from here to the end of the horizon… I swear it!"

May marches off leaving the entity with her turn to digest current events.

"Always hovering around me… All this time you…" a small chuckle escapes her being as she pets her loyal Mareep. "You become a vegetable? In a matter of minutes you blew me away with a hurricane of emotions… That's as spectacular as it is unbearably destructive."

Watching the sky mend itself, the entity gratefully accepted Mareep's passing of her ring and picked herself up to spread her cotton wings.

"This is your world after all, seize it! The door to your heart is fragile but yearns for those wild emotions! Spread those invisible wings and grasp your dreams!"

**End Intermission**

--

(Notes)

To be honest, this chapter, well the concept of it, was actually supposed to be a flashback that took place within **Chapter 0 Part C**. But due to planning and wanting to cut page length it was dropped…

Dropped but not forgotten. This chapter was refurbished and is made to take place between the events of **Chapter 0 Part B and C.** becoming an explanation of past and framework of the future.

Until Chapter 1...


	5. Peacemaker Part 1 of 2

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

It was only the start of sunrise in the water-based region of Hoenn. And within the fields of the small farm village LittleRoot it is said, "Around these hours, when the rising sun flashes orange, the twinkling stars that can already be seen at its greatest splendor here make an even greater note of inspirational beauty as it paints the sky with its daily good-bye…"

If you were to display this scene for yourself, you might truly believe yourself lost in a painting… While those who make this quiet place their home would simply dub your awe-

"Laughable." A woman scoffs in her home, showing complete distaste to whatever running on TV. "These Kanto dramas are utterly laughable… I can't believe I actually thought Cerulean Queens would be the next overseas hit."

The woman makes no reaction when the door opens. Entering the room is a rather homely looking man, whose most notable feature would be his white lab coat, giving him the look of a type of scientific authority. But what mellows that rather "elite" feel are his casual green shirt, brown shorts and sandals.

Throwing in the man's beard fully confirms that this science authority has no problem with kicking back and having a good time.

"Don't know how to knock?" the woman questions dryly.

"Ahaha, well we should probably install a lock on our door if that's the case Dear." The man laughs nervously.

As the woman simply counters, "Or use the locks we already have." The man could stutter "D-dear!"

"Always with your _Dear, Dear, Dear!_ Did it ever occur to you when you lock yourself in that lab, drowning yourself away in Pokemon studies your loving wife also has her needs… You should be grateful I haven't had an affair."

"Perhaps you should lay off those soaps…" the man mutters. He quickly finds himself coughing abruptly when the woman glares dangerously in his direction. "Y-you'll be quite happy to know I took some personal time." He begins. "I want us both to be at the dining table when we hear all the data Brendan collected on his big two-week field research project I entrusted."

The man remains silent the moment his wife slams her hand against the table.

When standing tall height, along with strong arms, seem to be the woman's most noticeable features… Well, if you exclude her long white hair with blonde streaks and faded green eyes which always appear annoyed.

Taking her time patting off her sleeveless white blouse and green dress, the woman gives a small scoff.

"Hah, saying it like that I was about to say no way could that be **my** kid…" she grins. "But when I realized Route 103 isn't what I'd exactly call roughing it; I'd have to say as expected of a child with **your** blood."

"Dear…"

"Well, what are you standing around for? Ogling me isn't gonna get those boxes of pancakes, waffles and sausages in the microwave!" the woman snaps. "With quality in good soaps declining a large family brunch sounds way more eventful than dealing with that lameass neighbor."

The man gives a small smile to that. "And here I thought too much noise bothered you."

"Che, she looks way too young to be **that** age… And when she's not being an overly cheerful klutz she's bragging about her ultra cute daughter…" the woman gripes. "I have kids too, I'm **forty-eight-years-old**, not even in my prime, yet others mistake me for **fifty-four!** I bet her kid is an overly peppy clone…"

The man smiles at his wife's rare act of peppiness and heads to the kitchen, making a small crack about having to call off a get-together. His wife ignores this and heads for the window.

Rather than simply opening the window, the woman takes her time to watch a girl, whose most noticeable feature aside from her foreign sense of dressing is her long bizarrely styled bangs, enter the town holding a large suitcase.

From the looks of things, the girl looks more interested in the music coming from her headphones than she does in the actual lovely surroundings.

"Hah, just like I thought, can't even be considered a low tide." The woman scoffs before going about her business.

Leaving the girl, better known as May Hiromi, to sneeze.

--

**Story Arc 1: Lost Wings**

**Chapter 1: Smile! Understand! A Peace Solider Marches**

**--**

May gives her new home a good long stare. At points, it's tough to believe this same lovely purple framed home is that same dilapidated wreck Mrs. Hiromi showed her as a picture within one if her letters a couple of months back…

Speaking of the girl's cheerful mother, May makes no reaction when the woman wraps her in a tender hold from behind.

"So, what do you think?" Mrs. Hiromi greets.

"…Not a bad choice of color, though lavender would've been better."

"Ah, but to have that kind of say you needed to be here." Mrs. Hiromi teased. "So, what's this story about our belongings arriving weeks before you?"

"I fell asleep and missed the boat with our stuff, things got a little hectic after that but I enjoyed the detour overall." May answers simply.

Sounds of grass rustling against the wind prevent a pure moment of silence to pass between the two.

May blinks twice at this and looks up to see Mrs. Hiromi staring at her in curiosity. After further silence, the woman's expression softens.

"I originally wanted to say whose this super cute girl trying to replace **my** May but perhaps the best chance of closeness really is the respecting of personal space."

The woman stops chuckling the moment she sees the usual no-nonsense expression on her daughter's face.

"You… Do you enjoy reliving the past that much?" May questions darkly. She doesn't wait for an answer and instead, surprises her mother with a wide toothed grin. "Past is past. No point in getting lost in something so empty, nya?"

It's now May's turn to end her gesture with surprise when a few droplets of Mrs. Hiromi's tears hit her face.

The girl watches her mother remain in her own emotions before returning the grin with rosy cheeks as a bonus.

"That's right, past is past so it doesn't matter!" Mrs. Hiromi confirms happily. "You'll always be my daughter after all, so I should be relived that you talk so lightly rather than that scary tone you used to talk in. You got a little taller too, perhaps stress has been lost! And that adorable droopy little face you have is WAAAAY more inviting than that old cute, ultra serious face!"

Further excitement fills the woman as she places her daughter in an affectionate squeeze. "Nyaaa! Things are looking up!! Let's hurry inside and have a big feast! That would be the perfect way to start things right, May?"

No response. When again questioning her super reformed daughter, Mrs. Hiromi sweatdrops when realizing her super reformed, now swiveled-eyed daughter, remains limp in her arms.

"Sleeping off excitement is fine too." Mrs. Hiromi smiles.

--

(??)

_Ugh, my head… The air in this region really is dizzying…_

_Nya…? I blacked out didn't I? Guess I hit the ground hard for my body to feel so…_

May awakens to find herself staring at the night sky. Ignoring the fact she is laying on destroyed pavement, she eventually comes to realize she (somehow) is in Violet City's Yuzu Park…

…And it takes that long for her senses to finally match the wave of her actually ravaged body.

"The pain you feel here is superficial." A female voice echoes. "This is a **past vision** which recreates the many episodes your physical conscious underwent."

Deep frustration overtakes May's features after she coughs up a bit of blood.

"Superficial…? You call this horrible feeling superficial?! Whether we dream or not, pain is pain no matter where we are!"

The girl shows surprise when sudden snowfall appears. She blinks twice when that "snow" turns out to be playful balls of cotton, each pulsating with static that soothed her body on contact.

"Past visions are initially harmless since the physical consciousness will sense the potential stress placed on the spiritual conscious and pull it back. Though, this can become considerably risky for one with a decent level of astral comprehension." The voice continues. "Much like reliving a situation where your physical conscious already gave way."

May ignores the words of wisdom and gives a little groan when sitting up. Even though there are plenty of things running through her head at the moment, they become empty meanings when a hand releasing strong waves of inviting warmth places itself on her forehead.

Turning right, May faces a woman wearing a lovely white gown while, oddly enough, holding a large golden ring. What truly makes her stand out however is that her skin complexion, even her short curly hair, are shrouded in a strong spectrum of light.

"It's good to see you too." The entity chuckles. "You know, you always did strike me as the type who would enjoy reenacting events of days past. But," she enters lecture mode, "you should know they are just that. You cannot rewrite or alter the past; only the road where your wings can spread towards the horizon called our future is what must be grasped."

"Nya?" May answers blankly. After some mental backtracking, ONE thing this stranger says makes sense. "You think too much about the future, worry a bit more about what can be done today and then tomorrow at the end of it, nya."

"So where does thoughts of yesterday fall into the picture?" the entity counters in a playful tone only getting her cheek pulled by annoyed May.

"If my will desires it, I will do as I please. This is MY world after all…" she answers.

"H-how cheeky! You really--"

May releases her hold on the entity cheek and turns away quick enough to hide the guilty look on her face.

"…Or at least, that's what suddenly comes to mind when you talked as if you knew me…" she reasons. "Hah… and you seem nice enough to be easily remembered too…"

The entity watches May silently before finally laughing off the matter as déjà vu.

'Almost six-moths past, but the duration her existence seemingly disappeared from time and space felt endless…' the entity remises. 'Has it really been that long? I feared the worst, but I'm not residing in a small pillar of hope, but an entire world full of complex thoughts and powerful emotions… I couldn't be any happier yet, why do I feel…'

The entity yelps when May again, pulls her cheeks.

"Anyways, as long as you don't stir up trouble, you can rest here. And also," May replies coolly. "Even though I don't really care for them, Pokemon are more than welcome to stay here too."

Hearing this, the entity's loyal ally Mareep emerges from a small formation of merging cotton balls on the ground and quickly takes refuge behind its master.

May gives an annoyed look at this, but the entity covers the matter with sheepish laugher. The girl stares at her for a moment before giving up whatever it was she wants to pick herself up and leave.

The entity and Mareep quickly follow suite.

_"If I must, I will wait. After all, for doing the impossible this is only a small price we all must pay." _The entity mummers as she runs.

--

With the rays of a new sun beating on her face, May awakes in the long-missed feel of her bed. However, the surroundings, and even the long pink shirt on her that doubled as evening attire, are something of complete unfamiliarity.

All of the girl's curiosity washes away the moment she takes note of a teddy bear wearing a red scarf and fighter pilot jacket sitting right next to her.

With a strong blush on her cheeks, May places the toy in a tight hug.

"Finally awake little princess?" Mrs. Hiromi greets. "And here I thought you'd be the next Rip van Winkle."

Keeping the teddy bear close, May takes a better look at her surrounds. The excessive placements of stuffed animals, the bright wallpaper along with study desk and modern-age electronic devices that aren't too much in her interest are all the typical description of a girl's room.

May turns to Mrs. Hiromi with little expression.

The woman sweatdrops at this, coughing before finding a good counter. "E-everyone deserves nice things!" she argues before murmuring something about going a bit overboard. Mrs. Hiromi argues with herself for a moment before grinning it off. "Well, a large step to a new beginning. Happy Belated Birthday May!"

Watching her daughter hide behind her stuffed animal in her struggle to give thanks is an act that makes everything within Mrs. Hiromi melt.

Is this innocent girl really her down-to-earth daughter? This…

"NYAAA! TOO CUTE MAY!!" the woman squeals, wrapping her shocked child in a tight hug while rubbing her cheeks against her own.

"Uwaah! M-Mom! How long have I been asleep like this? Please answer, it's very important!" May pleas in-between smothers.

It takes some time, but Mrs. Hiromi overcame her "cuteness overload".

"Geez, you had to become so adorable when I spent all this time learning how to be serious with you…" she reasons. "You slept for two whole days with today being the third had not been for your wake up."

May gives a small sigh of relief, muttering something about minimum time. Perhaps Mrs. Hiromi hears the full wording, why else would she suddenly change an atmosphere she deeply desires most with:

"As much as I want to blame sudden change in environment for your collapse, it still won't justify that it was only a small player amplified by the common cold. May, you aren't indestructible. If you don't keep your health up…"

Mrs. Hiromi cuts herself off to leave the room and return with her medical bag, taking out a small vial after momentary shuffling. "Here, a Vitamin-C pill. It's chewable so there's no need to worry about water." The woman digs into her bag a bit more to pull out another vial. "I also noticed you have a low iron count so-"

"ARE YOU NUTS?! I DON'T NEED THAT GARBAGE TO LIVE! GET IT OUT OF MY SIGHT!"

May sudden rage washes away when seeing the shock on her mother's face. The girl grips her teddy bear tightly while avoiding all eye contact before shaking it all of with a reassuring smile.

As much as Mrs. Hiromi wants to answer to that, May places the teddy bear in her hands so forcibly it knocks her vials to the floor.

The woman just watches her daughter twirl around on her toes.

"I got some rest, so I'm really energetic, nya!" May continues. "All I need is some food and a bath and I'll conquer this weakness while you rest peacefully, nya!"

May loses her balance with Mrs. Hiromi catching her. "…I'm fine!" May assures, freeing herself from her mother's grip. "No need to worry about me, I'm feeling great! Now, I'm going to do my best!"

Mrs. Hiromi watches her daughter run out the room. Hearing a small collapsing noise followed by nervous laughter and hasty footsteps, the woman stares at the teddy bear her daughter enjoys and expressionlessly places her index finger on its button nose.

--

(Sometime later)

Sitting on the higher levels of a lone tree, May gets her fill of what little there is to see of the rural surroundings and attempts to immerse within a cool breeze.

And much like her earlier event, gains little out of it.

"Augh, the air here is really bad…" she groans. "And I thought climbing all this way would make a difference…" The girl feels worse when her recent words with Mrs. Hiromi replay themselves. "I really shouldn't have acted like that… Maybe… I just don't like their tastes." She convinces herself. "Yeah, that's probably it! All it tastes like is chalk that leaves you worse off anyway, nya."

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" a voice of a small boy yells from below. As May makes no effort to answer the child, he presses the matter. "I know you can hear me up there! You tourist are all alike, thinking you can just waltz on in and do whatever you want! Well you--"

"Nya? I'm a tourist?"

The boy blinks twice at this but regains his bearings. "Of course you are! Only some spoiled foreigner would disrespect the oldest living thing in LittleRoot! Bet your rich mommy and daddy didn't tell you--"

"I can't hear you, nya!" May shouts. "You should climb up and enjoy the view even if the air is disagreeable!"

"You're missing the point!" the boy freaks out.

"Or…don't you know how to climb, nya?"

The boy stares at May in exasperation before lowering his head in defeat.

'Tch! It's like talking to the air, a thick wad of it!' the boy gripes mentally. 'But this tree's practically LittleRoot's landmark! If Brendan were here he'd definitely smack some sense into her-- No! With him gone, I'm the only one left as LittleRoot's soul defender of historical fact and from those jealous outsiders who dare defile that! And I take that position with the greatest of pride!'

Along with his strong resolve came growing valor and a great morale boost.

However, that mighty foe looming above has long ago forgotten his existence and is now, pulling out random articles within the tree like kites for two six-year-old twin girls.

"Suzie, Sally what the heck are you two doing!" the boy shouts.

"Boss, Big Girl is really nice!" the girl on the left with a pink dress named Suzie smiles.

"We were never gonna get them back but Big Girl is getting back our toys, Chief!" the girl on the right with a yellow dress named Sally adds, handing the boy a rubber ball he lost to that tree and its inhabitants months back.

The boy stares at the ball, almost grateful to see it again, but coldly tosses it aside.

"Idiots! That's not the case! You two should be guarding the entrance to town!" the boy calms himself and coolly adjusts his glasses before addressing May. "And you… GET DOWN FROM THERE ALREADY!!"

"Oh? Is THAT what you were saying, nya?" May asked.

"That's right, you! Now wait here and I'll get an adult to--WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

Though the trio couldn't see it, a cruel little grin plasters itself on May's face before she jumps.

All the children can do is flail their arms and legs about frantically as that foolish tourist continues the plummet that would eventually end her life…

Perhaps it's respect for his fellow man that forces the young boy to turn away and shield the innocence of Suzie and Sally when the sound of contact with the ground is made.

Using this explanation, it's fair to say it must be the boy's deep respect for one he deemed a hero and brother that forces him into a losing battle of holding back his tears.

_"If you feel sad, just cry and then, stand again." _Is a line he said best.

"Boss… Big Girl…" Suzie mummers. "She's not splat, Chief!" Sally adds bluntly.

The boy turns to face May who simply gives a toothed-grin. "C'mon, you think anyone can die from that kind of height? Even if you can't climb trees that's pretty naïve, nya."

Somehow, hearing that makes his face sour.

Suzie and Sally on the other hand, chuckle at this odd stranger. A gesture May returns with a smile.

It isn't long until her legs begin to feel the shock of its landing, forcing her to fall to her rear.

"Owww… It hurts…" she complains.

"WELL NO ONE TOLD YOU TO JUMP PSYCHO!!" the boy shouts with a rather demonic face.

"Haa, maybe I am…" May answers much to the girls' amusement and the boy's dismay.

"Seriously, what is this girl…" the boy mutters with a large sigh.

**To be continued**

--

(Notes)

You know, more and more that saying: "Well, it sounded good on paper." is starting to play more and more of a role when it comes to writing for me now-a-days. But then again, that's probably what makes the Pokemon fiction one of the more interesting things to deal with.

You can make your own human/Pokemon character or use human/Pokemon characters of game/manga/anime canon but altering them in an AU (With the latter more likely in different fictions. I mean, you're not gonna write a story in the Kenshin-verse for example, and not involve Kenshin and co. in some form. OC or not). Then using that same canon universe (or placing pieces of all) as the setting or making your own w/out that feel.

A lot of possibilities and combinations with this field. I can't deny any really. Even if it's not in my interest. Maybe I'm just saying this is just due to this feel of "tension" that's falling into the Pokemon fiction world these days.

Maybe it's just me though…

Thanks for listening to my ramblings all the same and see you next chapter.

**04/08/08 Update****: **Since I never gave **Chapters 1-4 **any real attention, I'm pretty much pampering them with the much needed tense usage updates they need as well as any fixing to the structure so things can flow a lot better.

For one thing, May came off too serious on some notes so I had to lighten it to make her more playful and easygoing as she's pretty much supposed to be. It's kind of interesting looking back to see how difficult it was for me at first. I mean, I still have ways to go (bet there's still loads of stuff I missed), but when working on **Chapters 5-present **compared to **Chapters 1-4**, shaping the characters and stuff wasn't as second nature as it is to me now.


	6. Peacemaker Part 2 of 2

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

The heavy push of a playful breeze forces Mrs. Hiromi to pick up all scattered paper work and place them back on the kitchen table. With that matter set aside, the woman now moves to the open window that caused the disturbance.

Rather than successfully close it, she looks out and sighs.

Her uneasy feelings only increase when noticing May's cherished teddy bear resting on the kitchen table with its red scarf moving almost gracefully with the breeze.

"Right, right I guess I took you along for the trip this whole time, no need to act so dramatic." Mrs. Hiromi chuckles, taking the stuffed animal in her hands.

Giving it a longer look, the woman's teasing look molds back to worry. "May… just how far did you run off to? And in her current condition perhaps she…" Mrs. Hiromi quickly shakes her head at the thought. "No! I shouldn't force myself on her! I'll only be repeating past mistakes…"

_"Past is past. No point in getting lost in something so empty, nya?"_ May's voice echoes in Mrs. Hiromi's mind before _"ARE YOU NUTS?! I DON'T NEED THAT GARBAGE TO LIVE! GET IT OUT OF MY SIGHT!"_ tags along.

Perhaps her daughter's nature truly has changed; maybe that outburst was just pure coincidence. No matter how Mrs. Hiromi wishes to piece it, her daughter is in a vulnerable state and a move must be made!

…Right after she finds out why the entire kitchen sounds as if it just collapsed in itself…

Aside from the visible mess Mrs. Hiromi's frowns at the little intruder currently shivering in the corner like a victim.

The tiny raccoon Pokemon, Zigzagoon, watches the woman approach. Even though it has nothing but its own curiosity to blame, it frizzes its fur readying to strike all the same.

Interestingly enough, what would have been another chapter between the double-edged relationship between man and Pokemon hastily settles before it starts by the offering of a cracker on Mrs. Hiromi's side. The little Pokemon sniffs the treat suspiciously at first, but quickly nibbles away at the treat.

"You like it? Johto treats are my favorite too." Mrs. Hiromi grins. The woman snaps her fingers and quickly steps over the mess to create a bag of the same treats before handing it over to the little visitor.

"Here, you can treat yourself all you like later." Mrs. Hiromi smiles. "But for now, you shouldn't be here, the other person who lives here would skin you alive."

Though the little creature doesn't understand what she's saying, it does realize it overstayed its welcome. The Zigzagoon accepts the offering and exits how it entered; only stopping once to get one last look at the kind human before running into a nearby bush.

Mrs. Hiromi chuckles at this but quickly feels exasperation when realizing **who** **will be the one **cleaning the mess… But first--

The woman quickly returns to the family room to answer the phone.

"Hello? Eh?! Long distanced call? …Well, things are a bit tight, but this must be important… I'll accept, thank you. …Oh! Terri! I was wondering when you finally get around calling!"

Mrs. Hiromi stares at May's teddy bear with guilt before snapping to attention. "I'm actually glad to hear a friend's voice, letters only can only go so far y'know. Ah! No problem at all! There was something I really felt needed to be done but… perhaps being too attached to that duty is really my problem…"

--

**Chapter 1b: Smile! Understand! A Peace Solider Marches**

**--**

'How did this happen again?' runs through the eight-year-old's mind as he observes the two youngest members of LittleRoot laugh with their new friend with a strained look on his face.

The empty-headed outsider, considering her rather "not-from-around-here" dress-style of a navy blue shirt under a very loose white shirt where the sleeves were rather "flappy" in design along with the neck collar which is loose enough to reveal shoulders. This is all followed up by navy blue shorts and old-fashioned sandals…

Aside from that, she comes out of nowhere, disrespects the oldest living resident in town, nearly ruptured the innocence of Suzie and Sally and to top it off, playfully rubs off or flat-out ignores him when he tries to question her.

Truly, a troublesome person…

"Aww, you're leaving already?" Suzie questions May. "But we were having lotsa fun together!" Sally agrees.

"Actually, I was a little down before running into all of you…" May answers. "But now I practically forgot what was bugging me. So, thanks, nya!"

May attempts to get back on her feet but feels a sudden daze that brings her to her knees.

"…The air here is really annoying…" she mutters to Suzie and Sally's confusion.

"Obviously, your legs are still in shock after that stunt! You should be grateful alone to still be able to use them!" the boy scoffs. "Guess that saying is true about idiots never--"

The boy freezes in his place when noticing the glare May sends him.

"B-big Girl, that face is too scary…" Sally mutters. Her sister nods. "People look scary when sick…"

"Sick? Well I'm still a bit under the weather…" May responds, quickly turning down the offer for water. "Thanks again, but I'm gonna play in that other town where the air isn't as thick."

"Hmph, well if you're in such a haste to leave then go through the East Gate." The boy instructs. "There's already a paved road along the path AND the scene of the countryside is something a tourist--What are you?!"

The children remain silent as the thirteen-year-old shakily picks herself, thanks them once more, and makes her way to the next town through the NORTH GATE.

"HOLD IT!" the boy shouts.

He and the six-year-olds quickly rush a few feet in front of May. While she only blinks blankly at this, the trio ends their barricade by extending their arms.

"You're obviously ignorant so listen up! The East Gate is a path WE ALL HAVE TO TAKE NOW! North Gate used to be nice, but the Pokemon there just snapped and are too aggressive to allow just _anyone_ through anymore… So stop trying to be cool and go the right way!"

"Big Girl we're not lying!" Suzie pleads. "Chief is bossy, but the Pokemon are meanies now…" Sally adds.

Perhaps it's the fair enough reasoning, the boy's determination, or the near tearful pleading of the innocent six-year-olds, but the children show their own feelings of relief when May turns away…

…Backing up far enough to gain the momentum needed to charge their way at full force!

Despite the boy somehow blurting out to hold their ground, the berserker look May has on her face proves more than enough to leave Suzie paralyzed with fear and have Sally show just how important her sister and generally, living, is.

Moments like these makes one remember how small they are when standing alone… The same can be said for the boy, who at the last moment, falls backwards from his own hesitance… Only awaiting the berserkers-

-Leap over his shaking being.

With the boy needing to fully digest what just happened and the six-year-olds merely watching her run, May continues along her way with toothed-grin on her face until the swing of over-exertion finally proves too great.

Though not exactly what she wanted, resting in the soft grass of Route 101's tranquil atmosphere for the remainder of the time turns out to be a far better deal than sticking around a noisy town.

"See, nothing scary, nya." She says the panting boy.

When actually taking a good look at the boy, aside from his white T-shirt and brown shorts, his hair-style, despite the hue of dark blue and his thick glasses reminds May of that eight-year-old detective boy from a TV show she enjoyed watching in Mahogany. Or to a lesser extent, that twelve-year-old shut-in boy from that comic book about dolls with supernatural powers…

"You… Even if you are older than me, you're just an irresponsible brat who doesn't take anything seriously at all!" he growls in-between pants.

"Geez, you're so annoying!" May sighs. "No matter how aggressive you say the Pokemon in this area are, they're too weak to be a threat to anyone, nya." She reasons. "Sure, there must be hostility; they still consider this feeble area **their turf** after all. But they'd think twice about attacking even a little girl in a group…" May gives the boy an uninterested look before lazily turning on her sides. "Face it, they're more afraid of you then you are of them, nya."

The boy blinks twice at this, and then shrugs it off. "I was mistaken, didn't realize you were a Pokemon trainer. Or at least one that knew so much! You might be as good as Brendan!"

"Hm? Boring, boring. Pokemon are uninteresting things. I don't know why people like you wish to put them on pedestal when they live, eat and breathe like we all do, nya."

"People like me…" the boy mutters before frowning. "Ah, I see how it is. You're nothing but a goof-up, wannabe, no-trainer who couldn't even pass a simple exam!"

"Actually, I never had an interest in any of that stuff. I--"

"I'm not buying it!" the boy snaps. "Only second-rate losers talk like that when it's all said and done! Just accept the fact that you're nothing and hurry up and get back to town."

Whatever her reason, May slowly got to her feet and begins dusting herself off. Perhaps, it's because she's clearly annoyed about it, but the boy can't help but fill the void of being a single child with this simpleton when letting the impish spirit of a little brother overtake him and say: "The Pokemon must not be coming out because they smell failure in the air."

The boy winces when May grabs him by his shirt collar and brings him at eye level. The thirteen-year-old maintains look of indifference on her face even when Suzie and Sally pleadingly pull at her floppy sleeves.

Giving the struggling boy strong glare, May heaves a small sigh. "Now that we're on equal terms, can I have a say in this?" the children all blink twice at this but allow May her turn. "I'm not a bully you know, but it's really sad seeing a little kid be so poisonous, nya. You should…really act your age and… Enjoy your glorious youth while you can!!" she blurts with a glint in her eyes.

Considering the speechlessness, May seals the situation with a toothed-grin and a peace sign.

"You really are an idiot…" the boy mutters to her surprise.

May can't help but feel uneasy when seeing the mixture of disgust and insult on his face. It's long until his struggling only becomes more desperate.

"Let me go… Let me go already, idiot!! **You're** the poisonous one here!" he shouts. "All outsiders are all the same! You come from these cozy lives then act as if you're doing us **a** **favor** by coming here but you don't even know left from right here! What do you know about anything here?!"

May's speechlessness is all that he needs to continue. "That's right, you don't know anything, so listen up! The **decent** people of this town are concerned about the aggressiveness of Pokemon here! Because they matter, I'll block off this path until HE SAYS it's safe again!!"

May doesn't know why, but her hold on that brat tightens… _It was just trash nothing important…_ hisses something in her mind.

Not even the fearful begging of the innocent Suzie and Sally breaks this bitter trance.

Things only grow more awkward when all the children, for their own reasons, call the name of a hero.

All these things are just coming at once! As nostalgic this seems the girl hasn't the slightest clue what will happen or what to do…

_Defend yourself…_ is what runs in the back of her mind. If this "Brendan" character they kept chanting is anything like the way he's being hyped, then he must be a generic hot-blooded moron with a heart of gold.

Perhaps he won't fly off the handle too soon so she could-

"…Please… Please don't harm them!"

Standing a good distance away is **someone**, but never what one would deem heroic…

The boy known as Brendan places down his two grocery bags so he can fully catch his breath.

Since he's wearing a white school shirt with a black undershirt, sweatpants and sneakers, the only thing that truly stands out about him is his spiky white hair and, when he actually lifted his head to face May with a pleading face, his red eyes and light-framed glasses that gave him a submissive effeminate feel.

The practically docile, utterly harmless presence this boy gives off makes May feel even more out of place.

Taking a few more breathes, Brendan continues. "I-I take full responsibility for whatever happened! …So please!"

"Big Girl, please…" Sally pleads. "Brendan! Big Girl is really nice but just not feeling well! Please help her!" Suzie calls out to May's dismay and Brendan's confusion.

"What happened to all high and mighty talk?" the boy grins. "You we're better playing a ditz."

As the situation is completely above him, Brendan turns to May with a quizzical expression.

May turns away from that rather annoying look and releases the eight-year-old, as well as pulling her sleeve from Suzie and Sally's grip.

Brendan blinks twice at this but remains silent as the oddity of a girl walks past him. Even then, the unsettling tension that forces his body still as she passes is something that bothers him until Sally nearly knocks him over with a tackle hug.

"Brendan! Welcome back!" she greets happily.

"Welcome back. Hah, you really shut her up good." The boy greets.

"…Max, what did you do this time…?"

The boy named Max shows surprise but nonchalantly places his hands behind his head. "Don't worry about it; I doubt someone like _her_ can ever be from the Academy."

Brendan still shows discomfort which leaves him open to a more forceful tackle hug from Suzie.

Now on his back, the white-haired boy snaps out of his feelings to acknowledge that of the crying six-year-old.

Suzie has always been a bit of a crybaby but--

"**EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKK!!**"

"L-Laurel?" Brendan questions. "She must've seen a bug." Sally giggles.

"Idiot! She's in trouble!" Max snaps. "We shouldn't have let that troublemaker run off! She's got a lot of nerve to bother Laurel of all people… Let's make her pay once and for all!"

When Brendan hesitantly tells the boy to wait, he simply replies: "Brendan will get her good for sure!" while running off. He feels his body temperature fall from that…

"Big Girl isn't bad!" Suzie argues, quickly turning to Brendan. "She's not! We were being mean to her… She's very sick! Please help her! Please! Pleeeeeeease!!"

Brendan gives confused (but somewhat, growlingly annoyed) look at this, but watches the impatient girl run off. Sally also gives chase saying: "Brendan will do his best anyway!"

This leaves the white-haired boy remaining in place for a bit until he takes the resolve of cursing his luck, grabbing his groceries and following suite.

Once there, he meets the trio gathered in front of a downed May and the fearful Laurel.

The purple-haired girl shows nothing but tearful relief at her childhood friend's appearance.

"Thank goodness Brendan! This girl looked sick so I asked if she was alright! S-she ignored me but collapsed when she--" a more pleading look appeared on Laurel's face. "Brendan, hurry and do something! Please, she might be…"

"Unn-**I'm **supposed do something?" Brendan questions. The boy uneasily shifts his eyes away from Laurel's saddened gaze. "I suppose we can call a doctor. But even so, it's not technically our problem…"

Laurel stares at her childhood friend with disbelief. "…Brendan…you've really become pretty selfish…" she replies.

"I don't really think so." He counters.

"We have to think fast!" Max blurts, leaving everyone to hear him out. "Brendan is right, this **isn't** our problem, but LittleRoot gets dumped on enough! No need to give those outsider jerks **real **ammunition… So that's why!"

"Brendan…" Suzie and Sally mutter. "Please Brendan!" Laurel pleads.

The white-haired boy is unsure of it, but allows his eyes to wander onto May's form. Her cheeks are completely flushed, each breathe becoming more haggard. If he were to place a hand on her forehead, he's pretty certain "she's burning up", would be the answer.

Whatever her story, he really can't leave her like this can he?

This is Brendan's resolve when he places down his grocery bags and approaches the downed girl, pulling out a bottle of all purpose medicine from his left lower pants pocket.

Ignoring the others commentary, Brendan readies the item and positions the girl just enough for proper ingestion.

The medicine should be enough to calm the fever, he figures, just not strong enough to make her snap awake the moment it nears her lips.

Brendan's friends stand fearfully when he's knocked back by the outraged girl. Leaving him and him alone to face one who stands in a position similar to that of a four-legged Pokemon ready to strike…

"You… Touching me…" she hisses. "Looking at you annoys me…!"

With the shock still in his system, Brendan takes time to absorb what just happens.

"I **hate** the color red." The girl clarifies.

Brendan blinks twice at this before getting annoyed himself. Seriously, what the HELL is everyone's problem?! No, getting angry, that's what she wants… He can easily see a fight is what she's itching for, he's not wasting anymore time on this…

That's right; he has to play this coolly while looking cool. How else will he obtain his dream if he can't chill against this nut job?

"I-It's not like I asked for this color!" Brendan argues in a tone that makes him sound like he's whining. He mentally kicks himself, but continues. "But if it helps…" he reasons coolly. "I think the color blue is overrated."

"If it…helps, nya?" the girl blinks twice before retaining her aggressive position. "Hah, you shouldn't say things you hardly mean."

Seeing the ball's in his corner, Brendan proudly holds his poker face when shaking his head. "Blue is an uninteresting color that requires a special kind of essence to make it stand out. It doesn't matter what tone it is, blue is bland." Brendan shrugs smugly. "Well, I find blue uninteresting and you hate red, we have something in common but… it can't really can't be helped…"

The boy watches quietly as the oddity gives an annoyed scoff but seems humbled in her actions when eventually resting on her knees replying: "…Taking medicine when I'm not sick will just make me that… So be careful next time, nut job!"

"…Y-You! You're calling ME the--"

"See! Big Girl was scary because she was sick!" Suzie confirms. "Big Girl is calmed down thanks to Brendan's hard work!" Sally cheers.

"Idiots! You weren't paying attention at all!" Max scolds.

As the trio argues and the outsider continuing to emit her unpleasant aura, Laurel walks over to Brendan, hands him the remains of the medicine bottle, saying something about being mistaken with a smile.

Brendan turns to her with a face that says, "I blame you for this".

Laurel smiles genuinely.

--

(A bit later: Oldale Town)

They really weren't a bad bunch; sitting by a lone tree in the town park, May watches the group of Hoenn kids argue and laugh amongst themselves.

The twins were very likeable and that girl about her age seems to be a…okay person. The little boy is disagreeable; she'd better avoid him in the future. That white-haired girly looking guy…

Hmm… Pass.

May's feeling of tranquility is cut short when the group (somehow) gathered themselves around her during her period of thought.

"Big Girl must be lonely all by herself, so we'll play here!" Suzie smiles. "We aren't worried about getting sick." Sally agrees.

"I'm just here because Brendan and Laurel want to here more about your no-trainer Pokemon theories." Max grumbles.

"If it's not too much trouble." Laurel asks. When Laurel asks for confirmation, Brendan (grudgingly) nods.

"Umm… how about telling us your thoughts on where Pokemon came from" Laurel suggests. "I already heard from Max that you aren't too huge a fan of Pokemon, but please share your knowledge."

May stares at the group blankly before giving an annoyed sigh.

"Pokemon… aren't even of this existence, nya." She replies solemnly. "To do what they can that a human can't, they came here from some world that exists alongside ours and always watches this one, nya. Pokemon are just things that came to keep this world from falling into a land ravaged by destruction and famine…" May gives a shrug. "I'm pretty sure they lost that purpose and just overstay their welcome now, nya."

From the dead silence given to her, May can't help but inwardly cringe.

"Was that some kind of bedtime story you were told as a kid?" Max questions. "That's ridiculous! Tell that to a Pokemon authority and they'll laugh right in your face."

"It does seem pretty far off doesn't it?" Laurel reasons with Suzie and Sally nodding.

"That's fair enough reasoning…" Brendan's voice trails in.

Everyone turns to the white-haired boy as he looked out to the sky.

"A world that exists around us but can't see… Only the beauty of this planet and its Pokemon guardians acts as sole evidence…" Brendan turns to the dot-eyed May with a bit more confidence. "I believe it's true! Even if your version isn't really the most convincing its better than what most say, right?"

This is the most active the boy seemed in awhile, his friends figure. Rather than question his beliefs, they all turn to see the action of the odd newcomer who shakily tries to pick herself up and walk away.

Back in the direction of LittleRoot.

Considering the surprise coming from the younger members, May turns to the group. "Oh, you haven't notice yet? I live there too. Why else would I hang around a place that discomforts me?"

The girl turns to leave but is given some support from Laurel.

"Oh! You shouldn't go back by yourself like this! I'm Laurel; I live in the farm far-off the Eastern Gate. And, I guess we'll be seeing more of each other."

May goes along with the girl silently but feels something off with each step made. Eventually, she pulls free from Laurel's grip to face her unsettled business.

"Hey, bleach!" May looks unsure at first but gives the annoyed Brendan a toothed-grin. "You… I hope we can get along really well, nya!"

Brendan shows surprise at first, but eventually agrees.

"Oh, and your meat smells pretty aged. Be careful about what you buy, nya."

The boy jumps at this, especially when seeing the faded expiration date with glasses now on. He curses his fate, but is just happy Laurel is too busy hoping to play tour guide to chew him out for "forgetting" to put on his glasses while at the grocery… or until entering Route 101, for that matter.

"I still say she's a freak." Max sighs. "I mean, what **regular human **has fangs?"

"She's swiggy, nya." Sally giggles. "I like her, nya!" Suzie laughs.

"Ahh! Now you're talking like her?! Gah! Brendan, give me some backup here."

"…I think things might be a bit more interesting. I'm just not sure if that's for better or worse…" Brendan picks himself up and heads in the direction of the grocery, giving the trio a small smile before he goes. "But don't you think something interesting is far better than being dull?"

"…Isn't that food spoiled?"

--

(That night: Hiromi Household)

"Here you go a large bowl of Mom's super nutritious soup." Mrs. Hiromi announces happily.

May takes the bowl and lightly sips the contents. "It's delicious…" she answers with a small smile.

"Hoenn spices are on a whole different league of flavor compared to Johto's so I'm wondering about that." Mrs. Hiromi chuckles. "But seriously, shouldn't you be taking better care of yourself?"

The woman attends to wiping some food off her daughter's cheeks.

"I'll drink lots of fluids and get more rest. You're the one babying me…"

"Eh?! And I said I'd stop that too…" Mrs. Hiromi sighs. "Anyways, at least you familiarized yourself a bit… Just try to be a bit friendlier with the local kids."

Mrs. Hiromi leaves the table to gather herself a bowl of her soup, telling May to call her in the living room if she needs anything.

As the woman makes her way to the other room, she hears her daughter's nervous voice.

"…How was your day?" May asks, hiding a small blush. "I-If you don't mind me asking, of course!"

Mrs. Hiromi stands silently for moment. When it all finally sank in, the woman's eyes light up as she returns to the table to enjoy her first meal at home with her daughter.

**End Chapter 1**

--

(Notes)

**04/09/08 Update****:** Still on my tense and fixings spree. This chapter like the last one lacked a lot of consistency in character depictions, too serious/flat outside what I actually intended and actually worked around that. The most noticeable change (for those who actually saw the original version) is May and Brendan's dialogue. Giving it a better feel to how different they are to each other as well as keeping true the original depiction I had for Brendan as I wrote him too polite when first doing this.

If not just make the situation flat out more humorous where I'm concerned.

Hmm… I'm actually surprised I never wrote it before, but May was comparing Max's character design from to that of Conan Edogawa from **Detective Conan **and Jun Sakurada from **Rozen Maiden**.


	7. I am

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

"Her room is surprisingly cute…" Laurel mutters, viewing the spectacle that is May Hiromi's room.

_Hello and good morning. My name is Laurel Windsprite, a girl born and raised in the countryside. But even so, I'm not a bumpkin ignorant to the modernization around me!_

_As for me… Well, I'm thirteen; I love art and attend many clubs in school where my grades are satisfactory and above average at best. I like being around my friends as well make new ones. _

_So in general, I suppose I'm like every other regular girl._

Aside from feeling envious of the variety of stuffed animals making residence, what really sets the girl aback is a map that takes up half the wall.

What kind of map is it or if it's a map at all is something that really can't be answered with all the missing places on the partially done item only a bizarre collector could love.

_…As to why I'm in someone else's home, that's…_

Laurel ends her tour of May's room when glancing at her watch.

"Oh no! I must've lost track of time! Wh-where's May? She couldn't have left already?" she panics before shaking it off. "But her mom said she never came down and there's no way she'd jump out the window so-"

Laurel blinks twice before turning back to May's bedside, remaining wordless when watching the girl sleep peacefully alongside her favored teddy bear.

"Did you try waking her?" Mrs. Hiromi questions sternly.

The woman's sudden appearance shocks Laurel, but she remains silent when Mrs. Hiromi's expression sours.

"I see…Momma's sad…Of all times to hibernate when today is the scheduled day of first impressions. Right, May?"

"Umm, if she's not feeling well then--"

Laurel jumps when the woman reveals a rather frightening expression as she grabs May's sheets and, with her daughter still wrapped in them, drags it out of the room.

What Laurel hears shortly after is the sounds of running shower water along with Mrs. Hiromi frantically screaming something about lengthy sleep and drowning.

"…Perhaps this was a bad time?" she sweatdrops.

--

** Chapter 2: I Am-**

**--**

"She's sooo cute!" Laurel squeals. "Um, can I…Is it possible that I…"

Mrs. Hiromi nods with equal adoration. "You can, but don't get too lost on squeezing the little precious, as fragile as she is!"

Both females give one more squeal for a little orange Pokemon whose most distinguishing features has to be its tiny yellow wings and tuft of yellow head feathers. Dressed in a handmade violet dress with matching bow, the Pokemon, or classified by its chirps, Torchic, shyly accepts her praise.

"She really is precious…" Laurel sighs, giving Torchic a small hug.

"Being able to have a Pokemon in the household feels so nostalgic…" Mrs. Hiromi sighs. "I'm glad May finally opened her heart to them. Earlier in life, she was so terrified of them I was forced to give my close friends to friends of the family… The rest," she remises. "Just passed away… I really miss them, my close friends…"

Realizing her mood is upsetting Laurel, Mrs. Hiromi hastily gets back to washing the dishes.

"W-well it was May who actually brought the little precious home! One day, she nearly broke down the door all soaked and dirty. The little one was in horrible shape and freezing, May just gripped it tightly: _This one will staying here until it gets better! I'll take responsibility so hurry and heal it!_ She said." Her pace on her dish washing slowing, Mrs. Hiromi smiles softly as a small blush forms on her cheeks. "Her face was scary, but glimmered with something I could love…"

Laurel, who tries to picture the whole scenario in her head, loses focus when noting the softness in the woman's voice. A mother's love must be very nice; she can't help but feel a bit envious.

The Torchic, though feeling the warmth of her own body being squeezed, chirps blankly at the scene, she snaps to full attention when May, in her school uniform, groggily walks into the room.

The chick Pokemon frees herself from Laurel to happily greet the girl, who finds it more interesting to glare at her mother with puffed cheeks than bother acknowledging her.

"My, my? Speak of the devil, good to see you're out and about." Mrs. Hiromi grins. May holds her position a bit longer until scoffing at the whole thing to take a seat at the table. "Good, good. Shall I make you some coffee?"

"Bitter, don't want it. Gimme milk instead." May replies, sticking her tongue to show her disdain.

While the girl ate, all Torchic's affectionate nudges were ignored. Not thinking much of it, the chick Pokemon, with Laurel's help, makes her way back to the table and shyly approaches May.

"Get off the table." She voices without making eye contact.

Torchic looks hurt but obediently follows, going near Mrs. Hiromi for the remainder of the time.

As much as Laurel wants to reprimand May, a quick glance at a nearby clock leaves her panicking about the time instead.

Something May doesn't notice until the purple-haired girl rips her away from her breakfast and towards the door.

The Torchic watches this curiously, wanting to join, she hastily moves towards May only to meet a closing door and further disappointment.

"There, there you really wouldn't want to dirty your lovely dress now?" Mrs. Hiromi comforts, picking the chick Pokemon up and throwing in a hug for motherly measure.

Both remain silent when May marches back into the room to finish her drink and grab her backpack.

"You remember right?" May mutters. "NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO…Don't let it out of the house!"

Mrs. Hiromi doesn't remember making a promise like that but smiles weakly when May asks, "You can promise me that, right?"

With the situation in her favor, May sighs in relief before running out the door, not caring to note the expressions of those left behind.

Mrs. Hiromi turns to the lonely chick Pokemon in her arms and frowns sympathetically.

"This will workout, eventually." She sighs.

--

"Nya? The bothersome one is still here?" May greets the ruffled Laurel.

"Of course I'm still here and you're going to class!" Laurel snaps, grabbing May's wrist and beginning her march. "We're going to be late even if we risked North Gate at this point. But, we can at least get you off with first day jitters as an exscuse."

"Ny-If we're already late, then why drag me?!"

"First impressions are first impressions! If you look like a late-riser **I'll** be the one hurting!"

Laurel continues to move, only slowing down to greet a menacingly tall woman whose most noticeable features appear to be her long white hair with blonde streaks and faded green eyes which holds an infinity of boredom even while stretching.

Though not answering, the halting of her actions show her acceptance of the girl's call.

Laurel brightens at the chance of a small conversation but frowns when May shows no interest in tagging along. If anything, the girl seems rather smug about the matter.

The only thing that stops May from full-out victory is the figurative pair of pink cat-like ears and tail that sprouts from her being during the shriek she makes when taking a glimpse of the woman from the corner of her eyes.

May twitches when the woman looks her way, her figurative appendages frizzing up when Laurel says something while gesturing to her.

"H-hey! W-what are you wasting time for?" May, who rushes to Laurel's side, laughs. "We're gonna be really late for class; early boost and all that, nya!"

"It's very disrespectful to not greet your elders on sight." Laurel argues. "Besides, you said to take as long as I needed."

"Ahahaha that? I was trying to be considerate, nya. Seriously, we need to go, **now!**"

"I know we're late, but you haven't met Mrs. Birch have you?" Laurel asks. "Mrs. Birch, this is May; she moved to LittleRoot a few days ago. May, this is Mrs. Birch; a long-standing resident here."

May shakily faces the woman who greets her with a mean little smirk. "Bipolar much?" is all she needs to say to make the girl sweat bullets.

After some hesitation, May gives a little shriek.

"She's a bit scary don't cha think?"

Laurel sweatdrops when the woman's face darkens. She doesn't know whether to be relieved or frightful when May links arms with her and forcibly tugs her to a direction she claims to be, the shortest of all.

"…Are you going to enter without greeting me, _Dear_?" the woman, better known to many as Mrs. Birch voiced.

His stealth mode a dud, Mrs. Birch's husband nervously chuckles while scratching the back of his head.

"Do you find me intimidating?"

"O-of course not, Dear! You just have a bit of a temper is all." He answers quickly. "Now there, you should just go inside and ignore what that girl said, I'll prepare you some tea-"

"So you **were** around…" Mrs. Birch confirms in a darker tone.

Though flinching from the change, her husband quickly replies: "Well, since she was only a child, I figured you'd show restraint--"

The man cuts himself off as his wife turns to him with a venomous glare.

"You… How could you leave your defenseless wife alone to face such harsh insults?!"

The man's gesture of nervous chuckling quickly becomes fear when his wife's shadow towers over him.

--

Once a part of a farmland owned by a powerful aristocrat family, the deserted fields surrounding LittleRoot's sister Oldale, is proof of a tale of a soul torn in two.

Though a bit more modernized than her tradition-driven twin, it is still spoken: "If LittleRoot is considered the place where the stars can be seen at its greatest splendor, then Oldale is the moonlit field leading to it".

This saying keeps its value as May, holding a fearful Laurel, jumps out from the field and into Oldale's sidewalk where a few bystanders give bewildered faces.

"See, no gate worry and we're in town at record time, nya!" May announces proudly.

"**I'm** the one who spent her whole life here and never knew of such an obvious route…?" Laurel mutters, wiping all the dry wheat from her being.

When the girl mutters that truth was probably for the better, May gives a toothed grin, pressing to move forward to another shortcut she found to make it to the school.

"No more shortcuts! And clean yourself off!" Laurel snaps, taking it upon herself to wipe the dirt off May. "Not just to keep your uniform clean but for your pride as a girl! No need for depravity!"

"I am a girl; I just thought school was about studying, not prissy stuff. So don't worry about that kind of stuff, nya."

Laurel stops to give May a stern look. "Look you, as the class rep making sure my peers exist in a happy and healthy environment in school and out IS my business!"

Laurel quickly wipes the now silent May's face with a tissue. "I'm sorry for yelling, but I guess it's because I never expected a student from Johto to be so…easygoing." Considering the girl's silence, Laurel continues. "Johto's envied for its academic success worldwide. So many schools, including ours, do as much as they can to emulate their style without upsetting families who wish to not turn their kids into pressured machines… I don't like this myself but… May, as someone who spent a longtime in Johto schools… Is my approach correct?"

"…Laurel's not Johto and Laurel's not Hoenn, nya."

Laurel blinks twice at this even when the girl says she's taking the short cut when walking ahead.

"…Doesn't she mean… "Laurel is Laurel…?"" Laurel considers this before shrugging. "Whatever. Thanks for the support anyway."

Laurel is about to continue down the path to school until finally noticing the path not of familiarity May is taking and quickly gives chase.

--

(Oldale Middle School)

"Hello, my name is May Hiromi. I originate from Violet City in the Johto region. Please forgive my tardiness."

'Such a different person from before.' Laurel twitches while the rest of the class gives their greeting.

"She's kinda ridged wouldn't ya say? Nothing at all like you said." A girl with red-hair styled as braided twin tails seated behind Laurel whispers.

Laurel nods. "I-It's seems so; she even sounds a bit different again…"

"Are you sure you really had problems coming here because of what you said?" the girl questions, a bit annoyed with her friend. "Why not be honest and just say you two were late because she was struggling to make a strong impression?"

Though chuckling at this, Laurel turns back to May who silently observes her peers. May doesn't appear the most interested in anyone in particular, but Laurel can't help but chuckle to herself when noting the look of relief on May's face when being assigned a seat right by the window.

"Ms. Hiromi, you look a bit pleased about my decision. Kids shouldn't be happy here, it's school!" the teacher grins.

"Ny-" May catches herself. "Ah, I mean-- Where I sit will not affect my ability to crank numbers, sir. I'll keep my grades in check, ny--with great efficiency."

A strong silence fills the room with many of the students left speechless, dot-eyed and blinking a lot.

The teacher sweatdrops at this, "It's a joke, a joke… No need to overexert. Perhaps that seat is the best place for you…"

Laurel sighs as May goes over to her seat, ignoring all the whispers following her.

"Hee hee, she IS ridged!" the redhead girl whispers. "She really should lighten up, don't 'cha think?"

Laurel pays her friend no mind, she just watches May with growing concern. On May's end, she takes it upon herself to view what little she can of the outside world through the window with an expression of indifference.

Mentally however, she's a wreck. May's spiritual psyche pretty much acts out her true feelings of embarrassment, confusion and deep yearn to go back outside with swiveled-eyes flowing with tears while continually bonking her own head and somehow, managing to leave the now still physical body to try (and fail) to continually punch, kick and bite it for refusing to act on her real feelings.

_"Ufufu you really are a strange one to say such things without concern. You even pulled a __**rule break **__for such a trivial matter, how funny!"_ a voice with no location comments.

May, still in the state of spiritual consciousness, snaps to attention when hearing the rather womanly voice.

_"Who are you?"_ the girl demands but quickly sees little worth in it.

_"You amuse to know end, please keep doing it,_" the womanly voice suggests._ "Please keep entertaining me with your unworthy stupidity! I'll be seeing you soon, so until then, keep me laughing, you stupid fool."_

An air of the voice's laughter fills the room until dying down and leaving May by herself.

_"…Wh-What was that about?! Who're you calling stupid, you big dummy!"_ May shouts to the air. After calming down, she now realizes her position. _"Nya? H-how did I end up like this anyway? Th-this could be a problem…" _she sweatdrops.

Luckily for May, her troubles end before a problematic adventure can start when her spiritual consciousness suddenly begins to feel the density of a realm it has no place in thus, pulling her back into her now haggard physical body, scaring the girl sitting in front of her when sharply turning to her.

The girl, who wanted to talk to May since the start of end period looks a bit nervous at first, but eventually gains some valor. "Umm… Y-you **are** really from Johto, right…?" she asks timidly.

May's expression remains lifeless, forcing the poor girl to attempt to poke her. She shivers when the oddity grabs her hand and squeezes it before coming to her senses. May blinks twice at the scared girl before her indifference takes over.

"J-Johto!" the girl asks in a frantic yet mousy tone. "A-A-A--!!"

"Don't mind her, she's always like." A girl sitting in the desk behind May replies sympathetically. "She just wants to know if you're really from the Johto region."

May blinks at this before turning to the girl who nods furiously. May takes some time to stare at her oddly but eventually releases her hand.

"What do I have to gain for being dishonest?" she responds, turning to the window. "Yes, I'm from Johto is that so hard to believe?"

"…well…Th-**That's really cool!**" the timid girl responds with excitement and May's bewilderment.

"And you're from Violet City, the city of history. That's so romantic!" the girl in front of her adds. Not even waiting for May to respond, she presses on. "Please! Tell me everything about that place, I really want to visit there for, ah- Research reasons one day!"

"She just wants an overseas boyfriend." A boy in the opposite row teases.

"How long did it take you to style your hair like that?" the girl sitting behind May jumps in.

"That style is cute but wouldn't you say that tuft of hair sticking out in the back kills the look?" a random girl comments.

"How far a ride was it from Johto to Hoenn?" a voice trails in.

"What's Johto like?"

"What Johto's Pokemon like? I really wanna see a Hoothoot!"

"No way, a Sunflora!"

"What's your measurements?" one boy asks. "Pfft, you actually need to ask?" another scoffs.

The questions… And the increasing crowd of people around her easily overwhelms May.

"Ah Laurel, you better get in there before she suffocates." The redhead girl grins.

Laurel agrees and quickly tries to calm her peers. However, her soft-spoken approach stops no one. All she can do is continue her futile efforts while the crowd thickens around the cornered May…

…That is, until the thunderous sound of a hand slamming against a desk brought everyone in the room to the attention of a fair-skinned blonde girl who faces them all with an annoyed glare.

Turning her focus to Laurel, her position calms.

"Why am I not surprised…" she sighs. "Everyone, please treat Lady Hiromi with the same respect you would like and let her breathe!"

Many students spread out allowing the blonde to march over towards the new girl, scrutinizing her with complete interest.

"I apologize, since our class rep has yet again; proven herself unable to keep class order, allow me set things right: My name is Amara Luna. Self-proclaimed keeper of conduct and this class-No, perhaps this school's number one girl!"

"Hoo-boy, the Queen of Tact is at it again." One boy mutters. "And she wonders why we never voted for her…" another adds.

Both boys turn away innocently when Amara gives them bitter looks. The blond now turns back to May, greeting her with a proud smile.

"If given time to bloom I can see many, including myself, looking your way." She confirms. "But your setting… While I'm sure black stockings with blue socks go well with the uniform and those hiking shoes are… _unique_! Socks, preferably, white, rolled up at the ankle is what's supposed to be done!"

May stares at the girl blankly. Still considering this, she eventually comes to note the similarity of leg wear amongst the majority of the girls.

There also seems to be a thing going on with hairclips and not wearing ties as well…

When furrowing her brows at the realization even Laurel was into this, Amara pats her shoulders.

"No need to think so much about it, you're the new kid after all! There's a lot more to be covered, but we'll deal with the bottom-up for now."

"…Now I'm confused… I thought I was in school, not a fashion show…"

"It seems that way at first I guess…" Amara chuckles.

"That's not what I mean…" May complains. "Why should I care about the opinions of a bunch of people who don't matter? School is school; we come to study and go home! Things like friends and clubs are only an illusion to hide the fact we are all competing for the top ranks and will crush anyone who interferes with that."

As May finishes her words with: "This whole thing is just another waste of time that's doing the same thing" the silence that follows leaves an eerie chill in the air.

Aside from the concerned Laurel, Amara looks the most uneased by the words. Rather than argue with May, the blond turns away nonchalantly at the ring of the next bell.

"You're far too serious. I'm in that cram program as well but know when to take it easy." She grins, turning to the headstrong girl with a look of regret. "You'll slip through **our** cracks if you think one shoe fits all. Study hard, don't be shy and get along with others…"

With everyone returning to their chairs Laurel couldn't help but feel guilt as the atmosphere suddenly got colder.

--

(Hiromi Household)

"Okay, one snip here and…Hah, I outdid myself! You're utterly precious!" Mrs. Hiromi squeals.

Dressed in a handmade blue dress with matching bonnet, Torchic gave occasional chirps while shyly staring at the floor. Something Mrs. Hiromi playfully pokes her beak over.

Feeling the sudden urge to spoil the chick Pokemon, the woman heads to the kitchen, quickly taking pride in a meal she wrapped sitting on the counter before raiding the pantry…

She then turns back to the item with a face fault.

"May didn't take her lunch?!" she freaks out. The woman then takes a more contemplative stance on the matter. "I'm not sure she has any money on her either… she'll be hungry all day… She'll come back home so tired and defeated, probably saying something like: _Mommy, I missed lunch. Food…Hungry…_"

The woman can't help but give a squeal of delight when picturing the scene herself. This motivates her to roll-up her sleeves and prepare a large meal ready for her daughter's return.

Torchic watches this curiously until she too, takes note of the wrapped lunch. Remembering being on the counter during its creation (as well as the sweet bread fed), she brightens when picturing how happy May will be if she delivers her meal and hastily tries to get Mrs. Hiromi's attention.

"Ah? You want to watch as well?" Mrs. Hiromi greets before remembering why she went to the kitchen at all.

The woman places Torchic on the counter as she frantically re-raided the pantry. The chick Pokemon in the meantime…

"Found theee-Wha?" Mrs. Hiromi keeps a blank expression when adding the disappearance of Torchic, the lunch and the widely open window that she, for the life of her, never remembers to close.

"May, special service is coming your way." She grins. "Tip her kindly."

--

(??)

_…Nngh? It looks like I feel asleep. Haaa…I was never much of a school person was I?_

"It's finally good to have someone from Johto come here. We'll be expecting exceptional results from you."

"You'll slip through **our** cracks if you think one shoe fits all. Study hard, don't be shy and get along with others…"

"Can you believe she actually had the nerve to all say that and still hold her head so high?"

"I'm not surprised, aren't all smart kids like that?"

"Che, if she's so smart why is she even in this class? Or this school?"

"If these teachers think were stupid then why not just frickin' say it then send that foreign twat to make us feel worthless."

_…Those people… Did what I say really bother them? _

_…What I said was harsh I guess, but its not-_

_**Gwaugh! **…why…Why is this so uncomfortable?! Is this really one of my dreams?_

Though resting on her desk, the area that surrounds May Hiromi isn't that of her classroom.

When the discomfort becomes too much, the thirteen-year-old awakens to find herself within emptiness…

…An empty world painted in despaired twilight…

This is what May confirms when looking around. No matter how far she runs, no matter how hard she tries to make sense of it, the result's always--

_"Nothing." _The womanly voice echoes. _"This is what you're thinking when you see the ruins sealed in the depths of your heart. You are also experiencing other thoughts…"_

May looks around to receive the same results she's gotten since coming to this place and returns to her desk.

_"Who is this? Why am I here? I don't like what I'm feeling here, so I'll be going now, weirdo."_

May ignores the voice and shuts her eyes tightly. However, no matter how heavy her spiritual consciousness becomes, she can't drift off to the physical body…

_"Why can't I awaken? This hasn't happened before! Why… Am I afraid?! I'm scared! Is this… __**a nightmare?**__"_

Feeling as if she was going to be crushed, May pulls away from her desk and hits the floor.

The girl winces from the aftershock, but quickly learns her hell is only beginning.

"To whimper over a little bruise? You changed so much…"

The girl truly doesn't know how to react to the sight ahead: A tanned-skin woman in her early twenties whose battle-worn state can easily be noted by her cuts, bruises and tattered navy blue cheongsam while she remains tightly chained down to a platform for who knows how long…

…But even then, those weren't her truly noticeable features… What makes May so surprised is the fact this soul stranger's form is that of an older version her…

The battered woman slowly lifts her head to face the girl. Staring at her for a moment, she finally gives the thirteen-year-old a heartfelt smile.

"…But, you're still so easy to read, little silhouette."

**To be continued…**

--

(Notes)

Had I been captioning this like a manga I would've wrote something like: _**Face-to-face with a tranquil smile that releases sharp malice! The hurricane of past and present starts!!**_

A second note plays back to the school scene, I'm pretty sure a lot of us had times in our lives where staff and parents wanted school uniform to cut down on clothes spending, halt dressy competitions and brawls over clothing. Maybe it was because I went to public schools that lost the uniform idea to freedom, but I felt uniforms were no better than no uniforms at all.

People **are **creative, and trendsetters would easily find ways to turn "the dinky outfit" into something appealing within the rules **still** creating that tension and feelings of including/excluding others.

Finally, the outfit _cheongsam_, or for what it really is in this matter, the _qipao_, is a female traditional Chinese dress. Due to western understanding, the word cheongsam (which is actually the name of male counterpart of the traditional outfit) has become disambiguated to fit both sexes.

**04/10/08 Update****:** Still on my updating spree but I have to say, this chapter without a doubt has been the one to receive the heaviest structural changes thus far. I won't bother listing them; I'll just say it turned a bland chapter into one I can definitely see myself coming back to often! Hey, I'm tooting my own horn, but it's cool to see how far one comes from the start don't you think?

For Amara's name it's actually derived from the original Greek name Amarantha. Add that with her last name… "Unfading Moon"… Heh, I never noticed it till now but I like that. Suits considering the role I have for her a bit later in the story.


	8. Trust

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

_Between the twin towns of LittleRoot and Oldale, there exists little people and far less rabble-rousing. Despite this, times have proven the darkest of corridors exists within all corners, no matter how innocent they appear._

Racing through a damp alley a young man wearing the Oldale Middle School uniform curses his forgetfulness when running into a recently made wall.

"Che, aren't you little too old to be playing safety patrol? Or is lameness just with the badge?" the boy jokes.

His smug look fades when his pursuer approaches him.

"So, the seriousness of cutting is just one big joke to you? Then why not let me give you a lift to juve right now?"

Facing the boy is a rather attractive woman; actually her face is well beloved throughout the world.

Because in the fight for total justice, the face of a "Jenny" is one remembered by all!

Unlike the trademark attire that follows the series of women, this one steps outside the orthodox by wearing black pants along with a long-sleeve shirt and fingerless gloves of the same vibe, which aren't very loose but aren't tight either. Finishing the outfit is a pair of turquoise, green and yellow running shoes and the well-fit blue jacket that usual Jenny don.

A vein pulsates on the right side of the woman's head before she gives the boy a far more threatening look. "Those who cannot seize the radiance of justice only have one path awaiting them! **My duty to fulfill that rite is clear!!**"

"Ch-ch-chill lady! I have lunch this period and I only went out for a pack of gum. I was going back I swear!"

The boy feels relief when one of the school security guards rushes to the scene. Not caring what follows him, the boy gives himself up to the academic authority figure.

Detention, or anything, beat dealing with the Battery of Justice after all.

_It's something frowned on by many during peaceful times, but the job to preserve order shall always remain set!_

Returning to her motorcycle, the woman places herself in a more relaxed position as she pulls out a small bag of breadsticks.

"…Only for a pack of gum? Hah, I really need to lighten up…"

_Always watchful, always ready; a woman whose soul remains charged with the outlook of justice. _

As the woman nibbles on her treat she can't help but keep her eyes on the commonly seen wolf cub Pokemon, Poochyena.

…Well, it's not everyday you see these irritable pups keep its usual poker face while having some tiny orange feather-like thing wearing a Victorian style outfit sweetly follow it around.

Watching the duo walk off silently sounds far more sensible than anything else…

Still, such events can't tear the vigilant woman away from the growing ruckus from behind.

Moving into the scene of the crime, the Jenny shows no expression when the gatherer of the small crowd shows to be just another class-skipping delinquent.

_I stand for those who fear to run themselves, a mentor and punisher for those whose hearts been buried in confusion, rage and sorrow…_

The child, or when getting a glance, unfamiliar middle school girl, behaves as if she's just been freed from a dark box in a deserted field when examining her surroundings.

"I respect your resolve to always hold your sight towards the horizon. But, defying the law is an inexcusable offense that won't happen while I stand!" the Jenny says, having no choice but to forcefully restrain the girl when she ignores the questions and concern around her and attempts to run away.

_I have been given many titles, but if I must be addressed by anything, I suppose "Officer Jenny" would work better than most._

As the unfamiliar girl doesn't bother to struggle after being stopped, the woman keeps her interrogations as simple as possible in return.

"Are you going to call my mom?" the girl questions.

Though taken aback, the Jenny answers, "If I must". The girl hesitates a bit before facing the Jenny with an annoyed expression.

_Stand sparking! Stand tall! Facing unexpected storms is the path of one who wishes to embrace their beliefs!!_

_Young girl who suddenly appears before me, what exactly is your justice?_

"Call my mom! Tell her…Stupid things for someone like me… Something like school isn't important!" the girl, better known as May Hiromi snaps.

--

**Chapter 3- Trust **_**You**_**?! Desires are forged from Dreams!**

--

Staring ahead, May Hiromi truly doesn't know how to react…

A battered and chained down woman with tanned-skin wearing an outfit quite popular in the eastern areas of Johto… But even then…

…The growing out of a hairstyle she had since early childhood, even having it in the dark blue tone she was considering dyeing it to for quite sometime. The royal purple eye color; a color she **wished **her eyes were. And moreover, the physical similarities though vastly matured, this is what truly leaves May uneasy.

The battered entity returns May's stare, opening her mouth to say something just to curve it into a mischievous smile.

"You never were the type to care what others thought of you. Did your nerve fly away with those precious memories?" she questions. "If I promise not to read your loud thoughts any longer will you start talking to me?"

"You…" May finally voices. "H-how dare you! You steal my image and warp my world!"

As the girl's shuddering body leaves her unable to voice anything else, the battered entity gives an understanding chuckle.

"Ah, so you consider yourself a queen? Then please, accept my miserable position as a humble bow." May shows confusion from the choice of words but remains distrustful when the entity faces her with a saddened face. "If you are a queen, then I suppose my home is another impoverished land you choose to ignore…"

At this point, it's either the momentary twinge of guilt or the bitter cold mist, but May feels an uneasy chill crawling down her spine after that liner.

"Can I ask you, my queen: Do you acknowledge why you hold so much animosity in heart towards those creatures? Umm…Pocket-something-or-others was it?"

"Why does **that** matter to you? Stop asking stupid things and tell me where I am!"

"How many times has my queen been forced to sully her hands and smite those miserable things for the greater good only to receive malice by those same awful humans who again, turn their backs on you?"

"Shut up already! They're **just **boring, boring things that's all!"

"So why let **them** take refuge in your heart while you left what you are to perish here?" the battered entity weakly extends her left hand. "This…This is the first time I've ever been able to lift anything…because you're here…I--"

Though reaching out to a bewildered May passionately, the battered entity chuckles whimsically to herself. Even now, the little fool gives her an exceptional show of emotions… the aroma of this idiot queen's doubt is just too intoxicating, she wants more! More angst, more fear, more… she wants to deluge herself within it all!

Too bad for her, the same feelings she wishes to deluge herself in are also the catalyst that push May to slap her outstretching hand away from her. And, as this is truly the first time she gained the strength to lift it, the entity (along with her ambitions) falls alongside her tossed arm.

"I…I'm not joking around anymore," May growls, "if this place was part of my world I'd know about before something you would."

"My queen…why are you so cruel…" the battered entity mutters. "Those humans, you can never co-exist peacefully with them and you know it!"

"I can't get along with humans?! I'm one too!"

Hearing this, the battered entity is now the one bearing shock.

Taking her time to return to her position, the battered entity turns to May with disappointment. "Back then, you were nothing more than a savage, mixed-up little silhouette that got lucky… Now you can walk on twos and you wish to move like royalty in a realm that you inherited? …It's… **Sickening! **_**You're sickening… This land of your forgotten heart! You only**_--"

Unable to take anymore of this, May marches over the freeloader. However, that darkened look on her face is quickly replaced by wide eyes with dilating pupils mixed with an overwhelming amount of sharp pain.

Coughing blood, the thirteen-year-old's blurred vision focuses on battered entity and that same slapped away hand that is one with ground…

…Is one and is replaced with a corrupt version of the Mantis Pokemon, Scyther whose rusted left blade pushes itself through May's chest.

"A thought; a fear, a truth… The desire that one holds to never let surface again becomes so strong it is tossed to the darkest depths of their soul to the point it is only a faded memory." The battered entity chants. "But reminiscing is common, and that thing you lock away will take new form to haunt you! Reminding you of what you are, what you have done. Your story is quite a lengthy one… Such a foolish, tragic tale it was…"

Though unnoticeable at first, the background is actually sinking in place. All while the more noticeable rise of black veins and light steam begin to spread across May's being.

Watching this, the battered entity smiles.

"You still wish to believe _you're _the one in control? Everything and anything that slips into this forgotten zone becomes **my** plaything… Including you, little silhouette…"

The corruption rapidly spreading while the Scyther attempts to tear its entire left through her, it doesn't take long until all signs of life from the girl come to a close.

What's not on the battered entity's script is the already foreign steam pumping from the girl's body still continues doing that. The actions from the third-party force the girl's tone to dull along the line of a grayscale before she completely fades away…

The battered entity watches this silently, only smiling to herself when noticing two dry balls of cotton give their last spark of electricity before fading into the mist.

Her mantis plaything unmoving, the battered entity gazes at the despaired infinity around her. She ignores the ground uprising that swallows her corrupted Scyther whole, and stares at her freely moving left hand adoringly.

--

(Somewhere in Oldale Town)

"Ahhn! It's so adorable! Is this a warning of a special show?" one woman squeals. Another woman nods. "Such craftsmanship! Could it be some kind of Pokemon marionette?"

The attention of these women, as well as those close enough, all focus on Torchic. Still dressed in the outfit Mrs. Hiromi made, Torchic shyly accepts her praise as she begins to slowly squeeze her way through the crowd.

Making doubly sure she doesn't drop May's lovely wrapped lunch.

The crowd gushes when the chick Pokemon stumbles over. Applauding when she, like that of a lady in-training, picks herself up along with her package, moving like the situation never happened.

They were nice, but that still doesn't help her situation, Torchic figures. For a second, the little one wonders if all humans act this way when pleased. Thinking of it that way makes her remember how sour May gets when seeing her but how that face will brighten like everyone else when she delivers her lost meal in perfect shape!

No time to waste thinking about it… she has to see it! And feel warm when she receives the hug she envisioned for so long!

As if being rewarded for her good faith, Torchic sees a Poochyena gnawing at its hind leg not too far away.

Though not necessarily fond of those brutes, she knew talking to it proves far easier than something that can't understand her at all.

Despite being confused by the getup, a thought bubble with the image of an older looking Torchic with gray hair and an apron appears in Poochyena's mind. The wolf cub listens to some more of Torchic's chirping before giving a lazy yawn while scratching.

Torchic watches sadly as Poochyena, no longer interested in her frantic chirping, goes about its business but become nervous when it turns back to her.

A bit confused that she's so far, Poochyena gestures to follow. Something Torchic does happily.

--

_My name is Laurel Windsprite, a regular thirteen year-old girl who attends Oldale Middle School like every other kid located in LittleRoot and Oldale Town._

_In an attempt to make themselves recognized, my school made many strict changes. The most noticeable is the "United Chairs" function where every class must choose their most outstanding student to be its representative for school related events and maintaining of class status._

_For my class, I was nominated alongside all the best and won the majority of the votes… _

_My grades are only satisfactory to above average at best, I'm not much of a leader and I knew I had long ways to go before I become worth anyone's expectations. But if I'm the one everyone wanted to be as their representative then I promised to do my best!_

_…I won't force myself onto them, and I won't be pushy. I'll be a rep who works alongside everyone and tries to understand where they come from to make a true happy and healthy environment!_

"Somehow, that doesn't feel right anymore…" Laurel voices softly.

The girl snaps to attention when noticing her redhead friend staring at her suspiciously.

Taking a better look at things, Laurel realizes she, along with her friend and the usual lot who prefer to be there, are inside the cafeteria.

"You're thinking of _her_." The redhead claims, making Laurel stare blankly. "You're thinking of that crude foreigner! Well don't let her bug you!!"

She then uses her braided twintails to mimic May's bangs as she quotes her words before scoffing at it. An X-shaped vein bulges on the right side of her head when Laurel tries to calm her.

"She has a lot of nerve behaving the way she did! If there's one thing I can't stand is a showoff but what PISSES ME OFF is those emo, the world isn't good enough for them types! Those types are just…" the vein on the girl's head pulsates until she ruffles her hair in frustration. "**ARRRRGGHHHH!!** I'm getting pissed thinking of her!! Laurel! Use your rep powers to make her leave and restore balance to the class!"

"I-I can't do that Rayya," Laurel sighs. "And it's not like… I mean, May is just as right as anyone else is…"

The redhead named Rayya, stares at her longtime friend slightly annoyed before giving an understanding sigh.

"You're so unlucky; being class rep means you HAVE to be neutral even though you know-"

"DON'T DECIDE MY FEELINGS FOR ME!" Laurel snaps.

The girl quickly catches herself and apologizes to her friend who simply gestures away the curious on-lookers.

"Sorry about that…" Laurel apologizes for the third time. "Rayya, if I'm being a bother and you want to go out-"

"Dummy, nothing is fun if Laurel isn't there. Now's whose deciding whose feelings?" Rayya teases. "Besides, Tammy is still sick and Steph is out without an excuse so if even if I am bored, I'll be bored right here, thanks."

"And if I add them with the usual half-dayers and no-shows then our class is at the lowest attendance rate again this week…" Laurel sighs.

Something the redhead takes note of, but unlike her usual methods, chooses to remain quiet. Especially when the purple-haired girl faces her with a pleading look.

"Rayya!" Laurel begins. "We've been friends the longest, so please be honest: Ah-That is… Am I any good as a class rep?"

Rayya stares at her friend silently before giving a reassuring smile. "Are you dumb? Of course you are! You're doing your best for everyone and we're all rooting for you! You… Just have a little issue with self-confidence which isn't even really-"

The redhead is cut off by a frustrated Laurel who slams her hand on the table shouting: "RAYYA! I'M ASKING YOU SERIOUSLY!"

Insulted, the girl replies "…what the hell do you think I was doing?" before copying Laurel's gesture adding "STOP YELLING AT ME!!"

The two girls continue their glaring contest until Laurel eventually looks away, apologizing frantically. This allows the winner the right to string her fingers through the losers purple locks.

"You didn't back down…" Rayya says. Laurel continues apologizing to the point of stuttering and welling tears. This earns her Rayya giving a light tug to the strands she currently holds. "Do you remember what I said when we first met?"

Laurel does remember something, but the only thing that comes to mind at the moment is the image of a long, dark-haired little girl bruised and crying by herself in the sandbox only to have her head jerk in manner as if her hair had been tugged.

No matter, it helps the purple-haired girl wipe her tears and thank her friend.

"I… I still have my duties!" Laurel stammers. "May, she went out by herself right? She's still new here and…"

"Oh, it's getting stuffy in here anyway. Let go." Rayya replies, winking at her friend when she stares in confusion. "Nothing is fun unless Laurel is there to brighten the mood. Besides, I'm better off appeased, right?"

Laurel gives her friend a smile before moving ahead.

--

(Meanwhile: School yard)

Staring at the sunlight peeking through protective tree leaves, May's expression is void of life.

She remains like this even when the Queen of Tact, Amara Luna, stands over her.

"You're making quite a deal of waves here you know…" the blond greets. "It may be a matter of time before this lovely star will be tossed aside for a superstar. I really am envious…"

"…What do you want?"

The blond actually considers this herself when staring out to the sky.

"…Hey, what you said about all of us being rivals is true… That's all we are in more ways than one. BUT! You and I will be seeing a lot of each other and are obviously what's going to be keeping that class in good standing so I thought-"

May turns away from the girl, muttering something about needing time to herself.

Amara turns to the girl as if hurt by that. After May mutters something about being an eyesore, the blond gives a small smile, before lifting her head proudly and once again, staring at that great blue sky.

"Well, I hope you're up for quite a fight because I won't be giving up number one that easily! So then my rival, we should at least have lunch together so it won't be one of hostility."

_Humans are such ungrateful, selfish things. You can do them fortune a thousand fold and you will still receive their malice in the end…_

With this voice running through her head, May turns to the blond angrily growling, "If you hate me…"

"So it is true, that rumor…" Amara trails off to May's irritation. "A fasting diet that said to be all the rage in Johto… It's said to purify the body and soul…"

May doesn't know how to react to this lost child but face faults all the same when she sets herself on the grass, placing her homemade lunch between them. Claiming she too, will take part in this "miraculous diet plan".

May watches this extremely weird, but totally amusing individual silently.

_Humans are selfish, backbiting things that only have their own interests in mind._

May's distrust slowly becomes curiosity and amusement as that girl's clear sign of hunger and constant excuses of starting a conversation to ignore this make the girl do everything in her power to NOT burst out laughing.

_…Nya? What am I saying? That doesn't any sense at all! I'm a human too… And, I love my Mom! She's the most unselfish person I know! Ms. Terri and her family too!_

_Safiya and her friends too! Sure there's some disagreeable people, but why should I fuss over miserable things beyond me, nya?_

Life returns to May's appearance as she watches Amara a bit more, but she turns away when her stomach growls. Something Amara used to her advantage.

"Well… It wouldn't be considered cheating if we shared half a lunch…" she reasons. "I eat low calorie meals anyway, so-"

_…Still, __**this**__ one…_

"I'll leave you to that, then. I'm going to the healing facilities…" May grumbles, picking herself up to leave.

"Ah, eating too suddenly would get you sick. I'll escort you then."

Amara remains in her place when May turns to her with a fierce glare that shortly softens to an annoyed pout.

"If you hate me… Then don't lie and act like you want to accept me. I won't change what I said, EVER! So just quit while you're ahead, hah!"

As she watches the foreigner stomp off, Amara can't help but fight back a chuckle from that familiar air of overwhelming pride.

"This sucks, that stupid dream messed me up so much I even turned down a free lunch since I don't have mine…" May complains to the air. "Ahhhhhh… I'm so hungry and my head hurts just thinking of all of that…"

"Ah is that the foreigner girl from Windsprite's class?" a female student points out. "Yeah, I hear she's top class elite stuff. Only for the eyes." A male student agrees.

"She doesn't seem like royalty to me. Maybe nobility but not royalty. Is Johto even that rich a region?" another female student questions.

"Well, she must have **some** kind of influence if she's gonna appear so late in the year." A male student replies.

"Should we invite her over? She seems like she might join." One female student asks her friend who counters: "Ah, she seems too busy talking to herself to notice if we call anyway…"

"Mnnh! Noisy people!" May growls. "Can't they lower their voices?" the girl grabs her head in frustration.

'_A headache, my queen?_' the voice of the battered entity greets_. _'_They say under these status aliments even a pin can be heard dropping within a busy place…_'

'_Everything else is maxed a thousand times over…_'

"You again? I accept that you're a freak freeloading off my rare nightmare scenarios but how can I talk to you while I'm awake?"

'_Isn't it obvious by now? To talk to a denizen of Astral, you need to be asleep…_'

"Dummy, that's why I said it doesn't make sense…Ahhh… I must be getting sick from all this…Everything is just blurry now…"

'_The rules of Astral are very lax, my queen. It doesn't take much for the second rate physical consciousness to be influenced by the dominant spiritual consciousness._'

May repeats the word "Astral" before revealing her again, void expression.

Even when finding herself back in that zone of despaired twilight, no matter how deep her confusion or piercing her fear, that lifeless expression remains the dominant…

…Not even a strike from a black thunderbolt stops that dejection…

"My queen, for you to return, you must have business here, yes?"

"…Why would I want come here?" May, on her knees, quivers. "I…I'm the only one who can control when I fall asleep so how can I be here if I'm still awake!"

"What possessed you to come to school, my queen?"

"At a time like this you're…" Whether it be the situation, or the unsettling chill from the mist, May gets to the point. "It's not like I had to…I could have easily told Mom I didn't feel like going or I was sick, she would have let me stay home either way. But, that would betray the trust she has for me…"

Another black thunderbolt strikes down on the girl. Even if weaker than its predecessor, it makes up in its lingering aftershock.

Still hard to notice, the background sinks in place, all of it sliding into May's being. All while the more noticeable rise of black veins and light steam again, reveal their marks.

"…I-I just wanted to go okay!" the girl admits. "I don't remember ever going to such a place and in Mahogany Gramps and Grams said I have no need for something like that… I don't think I'm very smart, I don't even know what I want to be when I grow up… I-I just wanted to see how it was like being there! IT'S NOT LIKE I EVER HAD ANY INTENTION ON STAYING!!"

"Correct!" the voice of the battered entity proclaims in a sing-song tone. "You're curiosity of what you found lead you to the familiarity you buried deep in your heart! Drowning in an endless passion that only happens for a second. Rewriting history, the world into your favor! My queen, dreams don't just happen, they're conjured from the hunger and lust experienced from your physical consciousness. There cannot be a plant if you do not plant and nurture the seed." She pauses. "However…"

A third, more persistent, thunderbolt strikes May.

"What's this crap about not wanting to betray that woman's trust? That same wicked enchantress whose deceitful words made a great demon silhouette believe she was a human? Garbage like that was never with you from the start! _**Learn to repent for that stupidity!**_"

The assimilation speed of the sinking of the background increases when May is completely felled from the thunderbolts onslaught.

It takes some time, but the girl begins to show signs of life, using what little energy available to hide her facial humiliation.

The shuddering from her body however…

"…what…trust…Mom…I really am an idiot…"

"Who knows," the voice of the battered entity muses. "Those things never did you any good anyway."

"…Stupid…I really am stupid…such a horrible, unworthy daughter…"

Hearing this, the battered entity remains silent.

"Mom… She bought me tons of books to be home-schooled. She was going to work longer hours and overtime at her job just to pay for a teacher… I didn't want that…" May admits. "I don't have any memories of us together, Gramps and Grams just said something really bad happened between us and I was sent to stay with them… I didn't want to be that kind of burden to her again, so I agreed to go to regular school… I-I wasn't really all that excited about it, and always had second thoughts!"

Taking time to slowly wipe her eyes, May continues. "I… Mom was so happy when I wanted this… I already betrayed her from the very start… I even stepped on her feelings by not taking her tasty lunch with me…! What am I good for anyway?!"

Too lost in her own regret to notice, or better yet, **feel** the steam pumping out of her body, May continues to grieve. All while that steam of sorrowful warmth mixes with the cold mist creating a small gust that engulfs her, shields her, while the ground she sobs on turns dry and brittle.

As the gusts influence spreads, the movement of the background becomes a steady overflow onto itself.

Bewildered, the battered entity reveals her existence within the far-off twilight sky. Allowing her free hand to show her uneasiness as it shakily comforts her right.

"Really, my standards have fallen so far I even go out of my way to take something as dull as a Pokemon into my home…" May continues. "That little one… It just follows me around and looks to me like I'm **its** Mom! I never even knew Pokemon could think like that… Seriously, isn't saving it from where it was more than enough on my part? I even let those things run around in my world just because they're just there in reality… M-my standards really have fallen…!"

"You mean to tell me… Finding this forbidden realm sealed away in the depths of your heart…this place of what you truly are…_** WAS ALL BECAUSE OF THESE HALF-ASSED REASONS?!**_" the battered entity roars.

A black thunderbolt attempts to put an end to the girl's defiance but gives strength to her barrier.

Still ignoring everything, May cries out, "…This is why I don't get it… How could what I be feeling let me have such worthless dreams?!"

Upon hearing this, the battered entity grips her chains as she glares at the betrayer with the thickest of venom.

"You…to say such hurtful things…_** ARE YOU RENOUNCING THE POWER TO DREAM?**_"

May clutches the ground, her body gesturing as if she shouting something before the gust around her expands across the area in such a force the ground already exposed tears apart! Forcing anything within or near it to be sucked into the thick white space below…

_Never…!_

…Allowing the gasping May to greet reality's clear blue skies once more.

A revival that freaks out all onlookers considering her "white out" only moments ago…

May is oblivious to the crowd, though vaguely hearing what sounds normal, the only thing she can see is a background riddled with pulsating ripples.

_Dreams make me feel that there's nothing I can't do! I love dreaming!_

Still in a bit of a daze due to her previous conflict, May remains silent despite the oddities around her but shows signs of a drastic recovery when a large ripple that calls her by name forms overhead.

The giant ripple overtaking the sky begs May to calm down, going as far as opening up a dark hole in its mass to drop down a giant hand heavily onto the girl's right shoulder to emphasize this. When May winces from the pressure, vines burst from the ground to place a tight bind on her right wrist while the giant ripple continuously asks for her snap out of it and, interestingly enough, if she's alright.

_…What I'm renouncing… what I don't want anything to do with…_

"All this trouble because of one place…?" the lifeless expression in May's eyes darkens. "School…I want nothing to do with it…! _**Any of it!**_"

_I RENOUNCE WORTHLESS THINGS LIKE YOU!!_

As if dissatisfied with her responses, all things the giant uses to bind May down disperse and cast down a punishment suiting to one like herself. The mighty thunderbolt of darkness doesn't strike the girl however, not when her gust shield reemerges to take the blow for its host, and cause everything to be engulfed in a storm of destruction and flames.

Still possessing lifeless eyes of dark thoughts, May snaps awake to true realm of the physical existence and slowly begins to examine everything… It doesn't take long for her to realize she is sitting up; her left hand is covering one side of her face and, something that really bugs her, Laurel's hold on her right wrist and shoulder.

"Laurel… you…" May begins only getting cut off by the purple-haired girl.

"If you knew you were sick…Then why didn't you say anything from the start? I would have understood if you **trusted **me enough to not lie and hurt yourself like this…" Laurel's worried face slowly becomes stern. "It's not like you're doing anyone a favor by coming like this."

Trust, huh?

Hearing such falsities, May gives the girl a fierce look before forcefully freeing herself from her hold and jumping to her feet.

Laurel's worries grow when the girl cautiously backs away. Laurel can deal with someone acting like a cornered lunatic; she has loads of experience when it comes to trying to win the trust of the various Pokemon on the farm. What she **can't **deal with is the pressure from whispers and commentary of her peers give.

And why not? The bold ones say. The mousy purple-haired rep's appearance only leads to one very lame conclusion: She knew it, and it's no one else's problem that another unlucky "savior" falls victim to the incompetent group that's really holding everyone back.

Not even words from Rayya, a few classmates, peacemakers and even Amara arguing in her favor can relive that stinging feeling.

"…Who ever said I was doing this for anyone but me?" May voices shakily. "Going on about trusting you… Like that's so simple, I can't even tell if you're something **worth** trusting!"

"…Is that because we're rivals trying to destroy each other?" Laurel reasons sadly.

What May mutters makes Laurel voice confusion, but like the rest of those who stuck around, watch as she runs off and surprises them when she disappears into the contents of nearby a tree in one leap.

Jumping from branch to branch, May escapes to the next tree and readies for the next jump.

_That's right… How can I trust something I can't see? That place really was trouble. My body felt heavy and my head felt like it wanted to bust from all the noise! I have no place being there from the start; it served me right for being curious._

_Especially if I'm going get those messed up dreams by being near it! I want nothing to do with them! Any of them!_

Landing on the boundary that separates school from the outside world, May ignores the threats from random school guards who are nothing more than ripples in her lifeless eyes and leaps to freedom.

--

Torchic is in a panic. She and her traveling companion had been roaming the concrete terrain of humans for hours. All she wanted was have a chance to place down May's lunch and rest a bit.

That doesn't give Poochyena the right to sniff the item the moment she places it down! She's hungry too but… It's still something that leaves her chirping frantically!

Poochyena sweatdrops at this and immediately turns opposite the item and owner when its ears twitch. Thinking her companion took her concern the wrong way, Torchic gives an apologetic expression when chirping softly.

Something that again makes the wolf cub Pokemon think back to that thought bubble only this time, in front of the happy Momma Torchic is a giant pot-roast. Thinking of pot roast, the air holds a scent familiar to Poochyena.

Torchic watches blankly as her companion sniffs the air and then follows its nose to the ground before taking off. The chick Pokemon is really confused by this, but she can't afford to be left behind! Picking up May's lunch, she does her best to move quickly despite her outfit.

Luckily for her, her companion doesn't run too far. Right around the corner Torchic met her companion trading affection with a human male about May's age. A type of human that works with Pokemon called a Pokemon trainer…

The type of human that bothers May more than she does.

Watching the close duo makes her feel a bit jealous. Hold on a sec! She's holding the bridge to make May treat her just like that! Maybe better!

Torchic jumps when the boy and Poochyena look her way.

"Why so jumpy Leo? You really weren't gonna leave your lady friend hanging like that just for little ol' me were ya?" the boy jokes.

The boy whispers something to Leo the Poochyena that makes it get a bit annoyed. Still, it can't help but look sad when parting from his friend.

Torchic knows she's being selfish, but she needs her companion…

Still, would she like it if someone tried to force her away from May? She'd outright end that "friendship" right there! Placing down May's lunch, Torchic chirps something that makes Leo stare in confusion.

Chirping a bit more, Torchic gives her companion a cheerful expression. Leo is fazed, but as the type to never give into softy situations, faked a yawn.

Still, trying to be badass doesn't stop it from seeing the chick Pokemon off.

Or witness it from being knocked down by a Poke Ball coming from his trainer's direction.

While the spherical container does open, it breaks apart when attempting to materialize its target.

"Guess I used that ball too much…" the boy mutters. "All that cloth must be blocking the capture mechanism. Hey, Leo can you get her to take off that head part so I can catch her?"

**End Chapter 3**

--

(Notes)

May mentions "Gramps and Grams" but is referring to Terri Rosen's mother and father who live in Mahogany Town. Though Mrs. Hiromi has a mother (as mentioned back in **Chapter 0's**) she has a very poor relationship with her. It's unlikely if May even knows of her existence at all because of this and other reasons.

**04/13/08 Update****: **Still on my spree. This chapter like the last one got some heavy edits. Mostly structure as things really got loopy there (And here, I wanted to go Friday the 13th on ACC-M for his comments when not being specific with what bothered him).

The entity also got some dialogue changes as I wanted her to come off as a lot more sadistic in her taunting towards May.


	9. Accept me!

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

"What's wrong, Leo? I don't see any tags or identification on it, so it's free to catch. I mean, what does a Pokemon without a trainer have to lose?" Poochyena's trainer reasons to both his and Torchic's surprise. With Leo only twitching in response and the target picking herself up just to chirp in protest, the trainer pulls out a used Poke Ball and points it Leo's way. "I'll just have Rona handle this then…"

As if something snapped, Leo lunges at Torchic. Since the chick Pokemon holds her ground, Leo breaks into a skid kicking up a cloud of dirt. Backing away as a reflex, Leo gives a howl that makes his own fur stand on in.

However, no retaliation follows. Instead, Leo sees Torchic; eyes closed tight and body shivering, standing in place. He knew she was an odd one but…

"Not much of a tough one is it? Well Leo, one hit outta do it!" Leo hears his trainer command.

Tsk, he thought by faking a fight she'd catch on, "win" and escape. Okay, maybe actually _telling her_ would have helped…

Nah, this plan was a nope-hoper from the get go…

Her vision getting a little better, Torchic watches silently as her former companion's human shows concern from the side effects his actions create. Hesitantly, she attempts to recover May's wrapped lunch.

A move that ends in failure when Leo hastily leaves his trainer's side to knock the item out of the alley! Though Torchic turns to the brute, yes, that horrible brute, with disbelief, the brief glimmer of desperation her former companion flashes leaves her uncertain.

Growling, Leo makes a dash for Torchic once again, this time making a sudden U-Turn into some garbage cans.

"Leo! I don't know what's she doing to you but you've done your part!" Leo's trainer replies, preparing another Poke Ball. When he makes the throw, Leo bursts from the trash and into Torchic.

It appears to be quite the tackle from the untrained eye, but Leo's trainer takes note of his partner's final moment skid that would be heavy enough to send a feather foot out of the alley, yet light enough for even the weakest of foe to gain their bearings and escape.

Torchic is no exception. Unable what to make of the situation, she only knows the feelings that item carried is something she HAS to deliver!

--

**Chapter 4- Accept me! Take care of me…**

--

_It still feels heavy… That's right; these miserable dreams keep popping up because I'm still close to that place... I have to keep moving! _

_But…_

Sitting on a pile of crates, May Hiromi holds an annoyed position as Oldale's Battery of Justice scans her school ID.

"Ah, here you are." The policewoman replies. "It's rather late in the year for new students, and as I assume you understand the bylaws created by the school I can say you're out here on a mettle-testing dare?"

The woman ignores May's gesture of looking away and decides to attend to her freshly brought burger value meal.

"You know…I could have run off anytime I wanted!" May comments.

"Ah, but you didn't." The policewoman retorts. "You didn't seem too intent on going anywhere once restrained, so I chose to test that valor and go on my lunch break. Simply enough, you're still here."

As the policewoman shows more interest in nibbling on her deluxe cheeseburger, May throws her an annoyed expression.

"Do you possess any intention of returning to school at all?"

"Eh? Who wants to return there?! I have no place being at such a boring, boring place!" May scoffs proudly. Gaining the words: "You sound like someone whose being picked on", as a counter.

"Am I wrong?"

"You're wrong! WAY WRONG! That place just has no purpose to someone like me! I…" May hesitates but swiftly says: "Let's just say things like that are dull messes I can do without!" before weakening from her growling stomach.

Now sipping her soda, the policewoman uses her free hand to pull out a carton large fries from the bag and offers them to May. As the fries appear soggy, the girl swiftly refuses. The woman thinks nothing of it and places the fries where they once were.

"You have a lot of pride." She responds when again, hearing May's growling stomach. "No, you aren't being challenged nor are you being victimized, you're **just** suffering from the miseries of a queen." The woman turns to May sternly when she notes her staring. "Am I wrong? Or you just insulted? You claimed dissatisfaction with the atmosphere you must deal with did you not? With that overbearing nature I can imagine how your tongue carries with your peers."

"I-I'm overbearing?!" **Now**, May is insulted. "You're not making any sense! How's anything you said at all got to do with me?"

"I don't need to know _you_." The policewoman shrugs. "I've already met those with your disposition. Like many selfish queens, what you call a justice suited for all is nothing more than a reflection of yourself. You're the first to question trust and duty if your own satisfaction isn't the main priority. Yet, you throw such pivotal meanings around as if they were just mere words… In your eyes, perhaps that's all they are..."

Though the words seem to be hitting the girl harder than it would most of _that type_, the Battery of Justice ignores this and deals her judgment. "The world will continue to develop and adjust, but you will always be trapped in those half-truths that only function in your narrow view of that. Isolated and despaired, a queen whose subjects will tolerate you until your shameful overthrow. Truly, the misery of a Queen…"

With everything said and done, the Battery of Justice returns to her lunch. Still, wasn't this the kind of action she earlier wished to avoid?

"Hey…" she hears the girl voice weakly. "What if…What if this had nothing to do with Queens or justice but just **you**? You always wanted to be in that kind of place… The people aren't much a problem, just, weird! But that place! Just being in there… Feels like you're being cut in half! Isn't escaping, even if you probably don't like it yourself, for the best?"

"Are you running again? If you cannot handle the changes of this world, then seal yourself in your unchanging room for the grim eternity. However," the policewoman catches herself. "Even if the pressure becomes too much for me, my justice will remain rooted and grow anew. Whatever form of justice one wishes to take, the sun will rise tomorrow. That's enough to look forward to…"

"…Umm, are those fries still up for grabs?" as annoyed as the policewoman felt, she went ahead and hands the girl her desired item. "Fries can be pretty good when soggy as well…"

A sign of gratitude no-less expected from one of pride, the policewoman figures.

That's fine; at least she can enjoy her apple pie without bitter morals tainting its flavor.

At least, that would've been the case if a sudden commotion brewing not too far and arriving all the way over chose not to challenge her.

So this was a traffic jam, May wonders. Nothing but noise, more noise and colorful use of words… That policewoman though… she leapt into action, blowing her whistle, calming the angry and slowly but surely, making things move again.

She never once thought about her current position. Just looking forward, never a drop of hesitation in her moves…

May was pretty sure this is what all people of her job do, but there's something really refreshing about this strong and cool knight of justice!

"The Battery of Justice really is impressive…" since she wanted a better view of the woman's exploits, May leaves her spot to head near the street railings. That's where she runs into a young woman probably in her late teens, whose most distinguishing features aside from her rather heavy choice of clothes for the season, is her thick-framed glasses and messy long hair.

Nevertheless, the young woman timidly continue her words by saying: "Even if she is the most reliable officer in town, she's still a horrible person!"

The young woman shows surprise when she notes May glaring. Since it proves to be just a class-skipping middle-schooler, she turns away and continues her uneasy study of the scene.

"If I tell her the cause of the situation, she'll unfairly brush off it off and talk about the concern of many over the few…That nasty, unfair woman…"

"Th-You're the unfair one!" May argues.

"…How cruel…that precious little one looked dressed for a grand ball ruined by those ruffians…It's just too cruel…"

The young woman again displays shock when the younger girl reveals an equally surprising grip on her arm.

"Stop ignoring me!" is what May wants to say. In spite of this, "What was that about a little one?" comes out of her mouth instead.

May proves just as taken aback as the young woman now. Even so, she's not being ignored anymore. "This is about a small Pokemon right?" she asks, releasing her hold on the older girl. "Everybody would be making a big deal if it was a human, so it's a Pokemon you're talking about…"

Though hesitating a bit, the young woman eventually softens. "If you saw it too, you would feel the same; I won't forget that cute precious one in the lovely gown." She explains. "I won't forget the compassion it spread when running into the street along with that package that seemed more important than its status and freedom…"

A sudden image of a battered Torchic meeting an unsightly end at the hands of a speeding car flashes before May's eyes. Despite feeling a sharp jab within her chest, the relief rests within that older girl's words.

_She said cute precious one, not a stupid little one…I'm really out of it to treat something like that as concern…_

May's relief turns into confusion when realizing her odd storyteller is now shedding tears.

"Even when it tripped in the street it never wished to leave that beloved item… That driver must have felt it…" she sobs. "People, Pokemon, so little have the compassion in their hearts to ever truly understand…That's why that precious one IS so precious! That precious one-"

Watching the young woman go on and on in such a despairing way makes May sink into her own forgotten uneasiness.

_What's going on to me? There's lots of odd things in the world. Besides, that little one wouldn't __**dare**__ defy me… And Mom made a promise to me; she wouldn't betray __**our**__ trust…_

_This one was just so excited about it I couldn't help but get-Augh! What am I thinking?! I'm still too close to that miserable place!_

"It's pointless! Why should I report a _story_ to someone like the Battery of Justice? Honestly, that's all it is to people with unfair morals!" the young woman rambles. "I… I shouldn't have come out! Nothing's changed! I can't deal with this…!"

May tries to say something but is silenced when noticing many fragments of light dropping along with the tears. Though not knowing what to make of this, what she does know is that…_STUFF_ is replacing the real tears revealing the hollow core of that hopeless young woman's eyes!

It's also at this point; her uneasiness begins to shift into impatience.

_…It wouldn't really matter where I try to go at this point anyway…_

Clenching her fist and biting her bottom lip, May's frustration reaches its peak when again immersed in a background with vibrating ripples…

Before May can react, she's knocked to the ground by a blast of heat.

What starts as a recovery becomes a sudden scramble to her feet when that young woman is replaced by a dark-space whose veins all pulsate for its tiny blue flame core.

"You…You really are an understanding person aren't you?" the voice of the young woman whimpers through the flame. "You actually cared to hear what I was feeling…You… You must be able to see…This cruel place…You and I… Maybe a small few, we can see what is truly behind the masks of reality…"

Breathing getting haggard, May's lifeless eyes remain locked on the sight before her.

"Since we're both so out of place in this miserable world…we should, _**we should share our pain of this miserable world together.**_"

Acting on its trigger, the flame ignites into the form of the young woman, causing the dark-space to set ablaze and shred through the area. Creating a realm of more apocalyptic flavor.

Despite her features suddenly becoming riddled with burns, the young woman stares fondly at May.

"You're here too… You really can can't you? The reality of this miserable world…_**Ufufufufufu… We're so alike…I'm glad…**_"

May really does see it… Chaotic ends of a miserable place… What's worse rests before her: The young woman literally turning into ash at the hands of a giant body of dark blue flames hovering overhead…

Run, scream, curse her fate; there's a lot she wants to do at this moment but none of it will surface… Instead, light fragments in the form of tears poured out of her lifeless eyes.

"_**We should… Your misery, we really should share them together… Feed them ME!**_" the fiery entity gurgles through the young woman's tongue.

Setting its vessel on fire, the fiery entity wastes no time in engulfing its new plaything into its flame body.

_This is horrible… _

_I ignored my Mom's feelings and didn't have lunch. My head hurts, that little one is burdening my standards, and school is a miserable place that generates nightmares… _

_Today was supposed to be a day I dreamt of, but I really feel miserable… This…_

_IF THINGS JUST WENT MY WAY--_

"Are you running again?" the voice of the policewoman questions. "You claimed dissatisfaction with the atmosphere you must deal with did you not?"

Even if the roaring flames are dominate, May can really hear it_…_ That policewoman's whistle chiming through this no-hope zone…

"You're the first to question **trust** and **duty **if your own satisfaction isn't the main priority. Yet, you throw such pivotal meanings around as if they were just mere words…In your eyes, perhaps that's all they are..." her straightforward reasoning continue.

Trying to follow the sound, May's eyes drift back to where she last saw the woman… Because that's where she still stands.

Within a small veil of the reality May once knew, that policewoman continues her duty. Even when the consequences of suddenly dropping her lunch begin to reveal itself, she remains looking forward.

"If you cannot handle the changes of this world, then seal yourself in your unchanging room for the grim eternity." The policewoman's voice continues. "Isolated and despaired, a queen whose subjects will tolerate you until your shameful overthrow. Truly, the misery of a queen…"

May looks away when the policewoman turns her way sternly.

"You have a lot of pride."

Still engulfed, the flame body around May expands.

"…I'm scared…I really am scared…" the girl admits aloud. "I really don't know why I do the things I do and there's a lot I don't get." The flame body expands to the point it looks like it'll burst. "It gets scary to think when things get too complicated because that's annoying! But…but it really wouldn't be reality if we always had things the way we wanted, right?!"

The fiery entity roars out in pain when its flame body around May blows apart.

"_**You… What kind of horrible monster are you to deny the reality before you?!**_" the fiery entity yells through the young woman, "_**How cruel…such deceitful things like you- Guh!!**_"

All complaints halt when catching May's glare. One can say her eyes look like sharp slits, something only seen from Pokemon like Meowth or worse off, Persian. Even then, it's pretty rare to see those guys **THAT** angry.

"Bring me back…" the girl hisses. "I want go back…_**Send me back!**_"

The fiery entity freaks out when May charges forward. It tries to get its vessel to call off the contract, but she won't budge.

"_**Sc-screw what she is!**_ _**Hurry up and get outta here!!**_" it snaps when the young woman calls May horrible and frightening.

She still doesn't budge instead, tears, the liquid kind, rolls down the young woman's cheeks as she futilely curses her fate.

Leaving May open to ram her hand into her stomach!

There's no pierce or pushback during contact, instead, a narrow dark-space revealed its blue flame core which May crushes without mercy.

Even if the realm around her begins to fall apart, even if the fiery entity gives its final cry, even if the young woman is being reduced to ash blowing in the wind, the only thing the girl can hear is her own satisfaction when her body begins to drift back to reality…

…Something that freaks out those watching as both, May and the young woman, whose left wrist May grips tightly, were standing trance-like for quite sometime.

While the young woman keeps her position, May acknowledges it all. More importantly, Oldale's Battery of Justice.

Those who stuck around watch that odd child run off; scold her when she rummages through the Battery of Justice's motorcycle… Then go ballistic when that crazy girl dash-jumps onto the street railings, using it as the leverage she needs to jump from car to car.

Of course such a ruckus would catch the policewoman's attention… Just she doesn't know what to make of it… Especially since the girl drops her value meal bag for her when passing by. While her partially done burger, shake and fries are one thing, the crispy apple pie inside is what really matters!

However, an apple pie torn in half-- The woman crossly turns to the other side of the street where she sees May quickly munching on something with her back turned. Once done, she faces the woman with an X-shaped vein, clenches her fist, takes a deep breath--

"POLICEWOMAAAAAN!" she shouts. "STARTING TOMORROW I'LL BE GOING TO SCHOOL EVERYDAY!!"

Once again, onlookers are dumbfounded. All they do is slowly shift focus to the Battery of Justice.

The policewoman, though taken aback, wrinkles her nose. "Tomorrow? Why not right now? Or are you still creating rules only you can follow?"

The crowd now turns back to the girl who look as of on the verge of tears.

"I'm not you…" May counters. "You only think tomorrow will be great if the sun rises. But even if the weather is no good or even if tomorrow's not here yet, I'll always be looking forward! That's because… Because…" May hesitates, but in front of this woman, she finds nerve. "THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN ETERNITY OF HIDING UNDER YOUR SHEETS!!"

Those in the area share a mixture of emotions. While confusion is amongst the mainstream, elders' in-particular can't help but grin hearing this.

"I'll believe in the hand of the self-righteous when the time comes then." The policewoman replies. "Nevertheless, the hand of absolution will not be touched upon should you willingly defy your duties again."

May watches the woman return to her duty without voicing another word. This is fine, she figures.

She needs to look forward and find answers on her own terms.

--

_…You really have no type of instinct at all… Even the smallest of humans have __**that!**__ Even if they got hurt outnumbered like you, they'd get hurt trying to __**run!**__ So what's __**your**__ excuse? You are a Pokemon aren't you?_

She remembered that… It was a scene that carved itself into Torchic's heart. Lying on the ground helplessly while the girl who wildly fought off her foes loomed over her… Torchic wasn't sure why, but she couldn't fear this one.

_You're too small to be good for anyone. _Torchic heard that girl say before wrapped around tight warmth.

_A Pokemon born with no instincts is nothing more than a furry shell beating the heart of a human…You'll always be in others need…_

Torchic remembered that too, so happy in that warmth, she closed her eyes and opened them to find herself with this woman who attended to her wounds without fail.

_Things like that always make this world appear greatly one-sided. Human and Pokemon, some are born with unbalanced power, while unfortunate ones like yourself are born to be their food… Such a one-sided world this is…_

She had a very kind voice, Torchic noticed, but… She didn't get what she was talking about…

_But you know, no matter how bleak the balance looks, everyone is ultimately deprived of something and blessed with something equally great…_

Now Torchic was really confused. The woman saw that and smiled. She was totally different from that girl… Ah, wait! Where is--

_Those with power are deprived of their hearts and know of nothing else but endless combat. While those deprived of strength must look to their hearts for the courage to overcome all fears… The imbalance then shifts and repeats…_

_Do you wish to know your blessing little one? That very depravity that differentiates the standards of human and Pokemon!_

_You, of course!_

Her blessing is…Herself? …That didn't make sense, Torchic thought. Shouldn't she be happy to be here? Wherever here is…

_My daughter, the one who brought you here, had a case similar to you… Sometimes I wonder if that problem really has been solved…_

_Ah! I'm sorry, I must be boring you! But you know, at one point my daughter loved to fight even if she was losing. She'd always scare me half to death coming home with a few scratches but one day, without warning, she suddenly grew out of her passion yet was even more violent and uncontrollable than ever. _

_It was quite scary as her injuries at that point were in your range…But it was even scarier because the distance between us became worse…_

_Wh-what I'm saying is while you're a Pokemon that appears too weak to battle, my daughter was a human who- What I'm really saying is- _

_DON'T WASTE YOUR HEART HATING THOSE WHO REFUSE TO KNOW YOU! There's more to this world than raw power and how you're looked at! Any mother would be pained if they watch their child grow so cold!_

_Sheesh… Now I'm talking about MY depravities!_

Someone so amazing was connected to someone kind?! Torchic didn't understand all that "depravity" stuff but the thought of having something special while another didn't made her feel lonely.

This feeling was soothed when the woman pets her.

_…Do you want to become one of my children? If you already have a place to go that's fine, but I'm positive my May-No, __**our **__precious May, will cherish you as family not as her trophy. Ties such as that cannot be torn so simply you know…_

When looking into the eyes of that woman, Torchic really felt she was making a pact with some kind of enchantress. But she didn't care! Children, mother, daughter, she didn't get their meaning, but wanted these!

She wanted to be sheltered! To be a daughter, to be protected and loved all by that girl! She was small, but she wanted all that!

_Well, I should make a great meal for the newest addition to the family!_

--

In an abandoned construction zone within the outskirts of Oldale, May's carefully wrapped lunch slides into the dirt while its exhausted carrier tumbles not too far from it.

"Geez, this little squirt made us run this far in that flappy thing? And whose has the highest record in short distance sprints again?" the trainer jokes in between breaths. "But, I guess runnin' is all you got once your little web of seductions been exposed and defeated! Isn't that right, Rona?"

Torchic backs against a wooden fence when stared down by the trainer's far more threatening Poochyena Rona. The female Pokemon throws her prey a proud expression when her human says, "Show it the true power of a woman!"

Torchic gets nervous about it, but weakly tries to chirp reason with Rona who arrogantly lifts her nose to the air. Torchic's more defeated chirps cause an appearance of an X-shaped vein on the head of the now poised to attack Rona.

Fear overwhelming her, Torchic makes a, in Rona's eyes, futile run to her right.

"She really loves that package…" Rona hears her human voice. "Well it does make her even cuter huh?"

Pissed, Rona kicks dirt at her trainer and makes a dash after Torchic.

Catching up to her prey wasn't a challenge… Heck, she can even **outrun** her if she willed it. After all, she IS Level 11! What's that dress-up doll? A Level 2? Level 5 at best. Whatever attack Rona uses would crush that weakling.

Prissy little dolls don't deserve a fast finish; they need to feel the sting of reality. They deserve to be ripped away from their sheltered pseudo-human lives and face the destiny of a Pokemon!

Rona only nudged her prey and she goes flying into some boxes! It's laughable!

Well… being Level 11 you tend to forget your own strength… Hopefully the little doll won't faint **too** suddenly.

"That was a little too much Rona, but Leo's been avenged. Good job!" Rona's trainer calls.

Feh, he's too soft, the wolf cub scoffs. The only reason that slacker Leo is such is all due to the freedom and spoiling that human of theirs isn't afraid to lavish them with. She'd be the same if she didn't put her paw down!

And now he wants to make that unworthy puff of feathers part of _her_ party?!

Look at her…even when struggling to leave those boxes; all she does is beg over that tasty smelling trinket. Does it really make her feel closer to the humans, Rona wonders.

Placing a dominating paw on the item, Rona ignores her inferior's desperate chirps. She won it after all… Because, unlike humans, Pokemon must strive for a factor that humans are too weak and fickle to understand…

Her trainer voices out against it, but Rona doesn't care. Will the dress-up doll continue begging? Will she breakdown like a human? Even those sickening Humanshapes have more self-worth than this!

This is why, as a victor claiming its prize over a beaten foe, Rona savagely shreds away at "her" prize until May's precious lunch flies out of its wrapping. Rona shows her displeasure with what she finds by launching a projectile.

Shadow Ball; A mark of HER undeniable power.

With only fragments, be it food or whatever, guilt overtakes the young trainer as he hastily apologizes to the shaken Torchic.

She can't hear him… The only thing in her existence is the remains spilling before her… It was all for nothing… The wasted feelings of that smiling woman… Her desperation up until now…The efforts of those who helped her… All for nothing!

The warmth she longed for so long will never happen… At this point, everything given to her was going being snatched from her!

The thought of that…The sight of those that caused this-- Torchic shivers.

Of course she's scared, but this even scarier feeling making waves within takes root from the belly. Still shivering, odd noises begin to gurgle from the chick Pokemon's throat.

Torchic really doesn't know what to make of this, Rona is a different case. Feathers ruffling, attempts at a menacing growl, eyes revealing a monstrous core. This is the embrace of a true Pokemon!

"Rona… Using that move…What you did went too far… If she beats you up I won't be saying a word." The trainer replies earning dirt to the face.

Of course, Rona IS surprised the little wimp has a shred of pride in herself at all, but "beat her up"?!

That dress-up doll is so lost in growling she continues doing that even when more boxes fall on her. As amusing as this was, the least Rona could do for the little doll is crush her as a Pokemon fighting the bitter fight 'till its last breathe!

The lag beforehand is hell, but Shadow Ball is the best way to not have to make contact with a thing of such low-standards of living…

Torchic however, isn't bound to that problem.

Bursting out of her place, the chick Pokemon surprises Rona with a full body blow. Even if Torchic is sent flying as a result of battle, even when it hurt like no tomorrow when she hit the ground, her foe got the same result when she stupidly aimed her projectile at the ground.

Torchic picks herself up to watch her attacker take her frustration out on her indifferent trainer. So happy but rob her own? Unforgivable! The chick Pokemon can't beat them up like May would but she has feet too so that's a start!

That feeling in her stomach returning, Torchic makes a dash for Rona, however the Level 11 won't be fooled twice. Leaping away from her trainer, Rona easily sidesteps Torchic's sloppy rush, grasps a piece of her dress with her sharp fangs and violently flings the defeated chick Pokemon right into the remains of her failed mission.

…She really is hopeless…

Those people who stole everything away are unforgivable but they aren't truly bad… That trainer is just doing what humans like him must, and her former travel companion will be there too, so loneliness won't be that big of a deal.

May really wasn't the most tolerant at times was she?

May…

Torchic can't help but think of her, she loves her. Even now, all the chick Pokemon could think about was the what-ifs of things if they went the way she wanted.

It's selfish but, even if it was for a while, even if she wished those faces would never leave her, she would always love the warmth May shared with her…

Now she has to embrace her new future inside that red and white ball that May snatches in her hand…

…Ah?

Torchic finds it hard to believe, but--Why should that matter! She really is standing there! Even if she's looking at her with those usually feelings of being a bother, May really does, she loves her too!

Ignoring the battle-hungry Pokemon, May glares at the trainer. Easy to assume he was one as trainers all seem to treat their journey as one big fashion statement. And this guy proves no different with his slicked blond hair, designer blue shirt, baggy jeans and black sneakers with red tints.

An annoying, self important bunch those trainers are…

"Do you lack sense or are all Pokemon trainers this stupid?!" May snaps, throwing the trainer's Poke Ball Rona's way. "This little one is with me so back off!"

Taking that as a shot, Rona growls menacingly only halting when her human steps in front.

"I'm very sorry for the mishap," he begins to Rona's exasperation. "You see, I made it my mission to catch every weird and exotic Pokemon I see and well, since she didn't have any kind of identification I-"

"Thought a Pokemon can buy a dress." May answers. "That little one can't do anything on its own. It's completely useless at anything it tries. I'm actually shocked it chose to **defy** me and prove I was right. Still," she adds. "You guys must feel pretty silly to let something like **that **give you such a hard time."

Ignoring Rona's growls, the trainer holds a strong stance. "I really am sorry… Sorry… I couldn't see where she was coming from at the start! I'd run away too if I was stuck with someone like you!"

As May's response is an annoyed glare, the trainer points to her challengingly. "I can't leave knowing you'll do who-knows-what to her! No trainer can let this slide! People like you… You have no right to call yourself a Pokemon trainer!"

The trainer holds his ground even when the girl looks away and shudders.

_I felt like this when coming here too… All I had to do was climb up a lamppost and I could see farther than I usually could. I was even able to track the little one just through the scent she gave off…_

_It wasn't how she smelled like, but fear… It was all such a rush my blood boiled!_

_…Was I always this strong?_

"C'mon, let's battle!" the trainer demands. "You win; you take her with me not saying a word. I win; she decides what she wants from here on in! Let's go!"

Since all he got is shuddering and some unnerving sounds, the trainer, as well as Rona, demands to know May's answer.

_When that rush happens, I also get those scary visions… They always treat me in the center and show me how mean others are. Right after that, I get a bit stronger… _

_Am I getting all this because of that other me in that miserable dream? Maybe… I was a bit too quick to leave something interesting and new…_

_After all, that place is only a small piece of my world…_

When the trainer makes another demand he freezes in place when he too faces the look of the Meowth family's true fury.

"Having a Pokemon do your dirty work for? How expected of a trainer." May scoffs. "But hey, if you're so hungry for blood why don't we go at it? No need for small fries… Or, are you not the one in control?"

May refers to Rona who already begins to approach her.

Fangs bared and fur bristling to the point it frustrates, Rona doesn't know why but just keeping a staring contest with this human wish it would make a false move just so she could soak her teeth in its blood.

This is actually exciting. Not a fellow Pokemon, but a mere human is giving her this thrill-- Why is it staring so hatefully? Duels do not require bad-blood… It is just a Pokemon's-

"_**Out of the way, small fry…**_" Rona hears the human hiss.

She suddenly feels ridiculously tiny! Like she's standing face to face with a Dragon-type who could crush her without a thought! Even then, those hateful eyes remain stuck on this…human…

Unable to take anymore, Rona cowers behind her trainer.

"_**So, shall we begin?**_" May invites darkly. "_**You were going to give me a fight right? So fight me…**_"

The trainer feels a chill run down his spine when watching the girl continuously chant her demands but knows it would be stupid to sacrifice it all when you got no chance regardless how much you want to fight for the right thing and picks up Rona to regretfully flee when envisioning their bodies being smashed.

The trainer got away safely, leaving May to drown in her own unfulfilled request.

"_**Fight me…Fight me…Fight me…! SOMEBODY FIGHT ME!!**_"

May snaps to her senses when feeling Torchic affectionate rub against her leg. The girl just stares for moment before taking the resolve of turning to the chick Pokemon, getting on her knees, and slap her!

"What were you thinking?!" she scolds. "You go against me, give me all this trouble and ruin all of Mom's hard work! Do you have any idea of all the damage you caused?"

Deep down Torchic knew a huge hug for bringing May her meal wouldn't have been her reward. Maybe a small pat on the head or the usual "Oh, thanks".

"Is this the thanks I get for keeping you safe from a place that would hurt you?! What do you have to say for yourself?"

…This isn't she expected at all… She always goofs up and never once did May-

This isn't fair…

"A-are you crying? Pokemon can do that?!" May questions. "…Hey that's not fair… If anyone should be crying it should be… No, there I go talking about stuff I can't do well myself…"

May hesitates at first, but she carefully picks up the crying Torchic and surprises her with a hug.

Before the chick Pokemon can enjoy her gift, May quickly releases her to hide the tints of pink staining her cheeks.

"Listen," she said sternly. "You see those sharp things on your feet? You beat up bad people with them. That's why I want you to hit me with everything you got!" May spreads her arms. "Don't stop until you feel better for every bad thing I did to you! I won't cry like you, so go on!"

This is what she stopped for?! Now Torchic is frustrated! Taking advantage of May's pose, the chick Pokemon leaps onto the girl's chest and uses what May describes to cling to her shirt and never let go!

May watches Torchic cuddle against her unable to really find a decent response…

_This little one really is warm…_

…But eventually wraps Torchic in a tight hug.

Still holding the now sleeping Torchic tightly, May remains silent when picking herself up and heading home.

_My standards really have fallen…_

--

"Quite a bit happened to you." The entity shrouded in light comments. "Though I want to question your course of action, I'm just glad you're okay."

Sitting in a hilly green meadow the entity turns to May. As the girl only interest is currently staring at the clear blue sky, the entity takes it upon herself to enjoy a refreshing breeze that makes drinking tea far more enjoyable.

"Am I erratic?" she hears May voice. "I don't know what that means either, but Laurel said that best described me. She's a weird person, but it's annoying…"

"That she spoke over your head?"

The entity chuckles when May gruffly tells her to shut up while hiding her embarrassment.

"…What's Astral?" she hears May ask a bit more hesitantly.

"Astral is…right here." The entity replies simply. Seeing the distrusting, almost pouting look May gives, she chuckles. "Let me put it like this: Why were you desperate separate dreams from reality?"

"Dreams are dreams. Reality is reality." May answers just as simply.

"Is that so" the entity chirps. Placing down her tea set, the entity stands tall, shocking May when revealing her cotton wings. "Since this is a dream you should be able to make wings like these and fly wherever you wish."

"Wh-why would **I** have wings for?!" May snaps.

When the entity bubbly replies, "Whether we dream or not, pain is pain no matter where we are!" she earns the counter, "You're crazy… You're just too weird to realize you dream then wake up."

Hearing that, the entity turns away.

"If you are here, you exist, if you are there, you also exist. But since you are a child I'll keep it quick: The ruby wave of a body's roar beckons reality for the tangible core. Leaving the sapphire chime to stop time and nurture a reality for the soul. That, you'll figure in due time…" the entity rhymes.

May frowns but helps herself to a cup of tea. "That's fine…I guess… But since you wish freeload; I think I deserve to know what you and that other me are."

May feels a strong ray of soothing warmth when the entity turns to her.

"For now, let's just say in **this **reality your powerful emotions are what shape how events unfold. As for me, no matter how bizarre a world the dreamer creates…"

The entity chuckles as she points to her golden ring resting next to May. The ring resonates before spreading its influence over the area, changing the hilly green meadow into a hilly green meadow full of lovely flowers.

"I can always rule break!"

May's face lights up at the sight of this while the entity's partner, Mareep, who helps itself to the grass, ignores the change and nibbles on a sweet pink flower.

"Well enough about me, how about you?" the entity replies. "I mean, even if it was a weakling, being able to see the core of a Wave, none the less, destroy it is simply amazing!"

Seeing May's confused face, even hearing a small "Nya" makes the entity feel a bit of relief.

"Wave-Motions and Chime-Motions are parasites of Astral; they live off and amplify the negative and positive feelings of their hosts. They're usually a harmless bunch that enjoys a free meal, but some tend to get a little greedy… This is why I think you're so amazing!" the entity gushes. "There are only **two types **of personas between the Physical and Astral realms that can do what you did. And since I don't sense any form of spiritual abilities from you, you're obviously a really special person to have that acute level of astral comprehension Pokemon posses!"

The entity is too busy trying to properly word the situation to notice May's disgust.

"Though Pokemon usually attach themselves to a person's heart in order for the host to dominate the parasites on their own, there's no mistaking it! You must be one amazing wild child to- Ah? What's wrong?"

The entity begins to worry when May stands with her back turned. Even then, she can't hide her sniffling.

"You're always making fun of me… Treating me like I'm stupid then comparing me to a Pokemon…. How's any of that amazing?"

"Oh, you sweet, innocent child, How could I ever make fun of you!" the entity whimpers. So pained by the sight before her, she rushes over to give May a hug. "You aren't any of those things so please believe in yourself! How else can you cultivate your lovely invisible win-Wha?"

The next set of events happens way too suddenly for the entity to count.

When she reached out to hug May she **saw **the girl turn and grab her left arm. Before she knew it, the girl pulls her close as she also moves in, making the entity **feel **a whole world of pain in the face. Despite that, a tight grip being made on the other arm was felt, as well as the feeling that she was lifted quite a bit into the air.

After that was just the sight of a blue sky blocked by May's standing over her with a satisfied look. Oh, she couldn't rule out the unimaginable pain being felt inside the fresh little crater she now laid in.

"Y-you… Rewrote the logic of this world just to do **that?!**"

"Are you forgetting whose world this is, nya?" May grins.

Even if the girl must feel rather highly of herself at the moment with her arms crossed, her welling excitement can't be hidden.

"Are you going to rule break?" she asks leaving the entity quiet. "I want to see all of it! There's so much interesting things when you dream and I was happy with what I knew? I want to learn everything about Astral and make my world amazing! I can expect you to help, nya?"

Even when the entity replies "Of course" softly, the warmth she gives off proves more than enough to make May give a warm smile of her own.

_Help you learn more about a thing outsiders should not know of? As long as it's you I assist, I will do whatever I can…Even if you __**are**__ a bit erratic…_

Since May already ran off, Mareep races into the crater and drops the ring on its partner's stomach.

Feeling a bit better, the entity sits up and pets her longtime friend.

_The winds of this world are already preparing change. I wonder how those wings of yours will shape out._

--

_…Still, all this trouble over loss of sleep? You really are childish._

The shining ray of the afternoon sun reflects the beauty of springtime on a Saturday.

May Hiromi isn't there to enjoy this truth. Resting peacefully in her bed, she along with the sleeping Torchic nuzzles closely to May's cherished teddy bear.

**End Chapter 4**

--

(Notes)

**1a. **I've read around and realized that Level's really aren't a favorite in stories, sorry to say but I like this feature. Such a gimmick not only creates "base" requirements for move learning and evolution but it also gives limits and breaks to the Pokemon themselves. In which I mean, take Rona the Poochyena for example, with her towering Level over her weaker foe, she held a great feeling of pride and strength for this "base" proof of her superiority.

Outside Levels, I also believe "will" is another driving factor for the process of move learning and evolution. And this time, I mean the Pokemon's time in properly executing their new trick/getting used to their new bodies and feeling when its "time" to change for whatever reason they feel there is, not Evo/Out of nowhere new move that's ready to hax in the middle of a fight when that change brings a lot with it.

**1b. **I had a lot of fun working Officer Jenny's character. I was trying to base her tongue around that of a European knight. (But since I also had to keep her modernized so it sounded a bit crude at times.)

**1c. **And with character dialogues being mentioned it should be said working on the whole situation with young woman was one of the most time consuming things I had to do with this chapter. (She was coming off as too much of a disagreeable person to my liking.) Originally, I wanted her to be the stereotypical "Oh I saw the whole thing and I act as the plot device needed to make the protagonist go through the catharsis needed to be all main character and stuff". But of course, I hated that and went with something deeper.

**2. **Had I had any art talent and drew May slapping Torchic, I would have added a caption on the side saying: **_Unable to hide her heart any longer, the mother hen scolds her child!_**

Or… I could just better my descriptive skills.

**04/14/08 Update****: **Hm. Not really much needed repair (just tense use and use of punctuations but that's the usual story here, right?), I assume it's going to be the same way from here on considering **Chapter 5-present **are when I got my act together and became a bit better at what I do.

Oh, remember that part in this chapter of the tears flowing with fragments of light bit? Well, sorry for never being specific about it, but did you ever the saying: "Every time you sneeze it's just your soul trying to escape"?

No? I guess I'm too old for my good.


	10. Heart Wave

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

"There, even in bandages you're still cute!" Mrs. Hiromi confirms loudly.

Despite her bruises, Torchic wears a lime green bucket hat and pink bandanna around the neck. As Mrs. Hiromi playfully pokes her beak, Torchic gives occasional chirps while shyly staring at her feet.

"Still, these bruises are a bit much… May, are you sure she fell down a hill?"

"Mm. That little one is already pretty clumsy, why waste such a flappy thing on her?" May reasons.

Cradling Torchic in her arms, Mrs. Hiromi hopes to question her adorably dull daughter but instead watches her with exasperation.

As she no longer has to deal with the dress code of the outside world, May wears an easy slip-on tank-top and black biker shorts. Only slowing down to savor what's tastiest, she helps herself to Mrs. Hiromi's much toiled on and rather multi-family sized meal.

The girl loses momentum the moment Mrs. Hiromi places her school ID on the table.

_I'll always move forward, no matter what…_ echoes in May's mind like a broken record, but something still bothers her…

"Well, since Pokemon aren't allowed in Public Schools, I suppose running here was the best idea. Although…" Mrs. Hiromi trails off. "Rolling around doesn't mean you should throw your responsibilities into the hands of the kind police people."

"It's really good…I don't think I ever feel full eating what you make…Is this what I've been missing all this time?" May mutters after a spoonful of her mother's stew.

Mrs. Hiromi, though flattered, doesn't know what to make of her daughter's words. Things became tougher when her daughter gives a pleading look asking: "What is school really for?"

"Not just that!" May adds. "Is it really important? What are you supposed to do there? Why? How should you act…I-"

"Well, it's nothing like those old B-Rated TV shows you sat through I'll say that." Mrs. Hiromi smiles. "School is…No, May you know I won't force to do anything you don't want to. But I really think this is something you should experience yourself."

"…It's not like I don't want to, I just want to know what it's really about." May excuses herself to attend to the ringing doorbell.

It feels awkward, but confronting Laurel proves something bound to happen sooner or later.

It's because of that belief; the purple-haired girl hesitates a bit before finding her will. "May, sorry about today, I hope you're--"

"I always want to keep moving forward, no matter what." May reasons to Laurel's surprise. "That's why… I want to reintroduce myself first thing tomorrow and start over! N-not only that…" she continues. "I'm not very smart! The only reason I'm doing that cram thing is to make-up for joining so late in the year! People go to those things for their own reasons, but that's the only reason I'm there!"

"Even someone so easygoing cares about-" Laurel cuts herself off to give May an understanding smile. "Sorry, introductions are for new students only. But you know, something tells me you'll get along with everyone really well!"

--

(Earlier)

Laurel was in a pinch! The seventh period teacher had to leave early and earlier events just showed what a failure she was… Not that the last part mattered, as a rep she **always **sucked, she knew that!

The true problem rested in her class: Everyone was in their seats; even more surprising those who ditched early were there too! That would've been a good thing if they all weren't glaring…AT HER!

Despite the hostility only one made his move, that being the self-proclaimed class tough-guy whose most noticeable traits would be his purposely greased up spiky black hair with a ponytail along with his blazer being kept unbuttoned.

Laurel stood paralyzed by the weight of the accusing finger pointing her way.

"You disappoint me Windsprite… **You frickin' suck!**" he growled.

Laurel stared blankly until the situation finally sank in. She gave an understanding smile when saying: "What? Did you just realize this?"

Even if some classmates held an uneasy ground, the young man kept his finger aimed. "So you admit it!" he growled. "We put our faith in you and thank us by letting us get bashed by those frickin' nerds? Whose side on you on anyway, huh?!"

"…Is that the only reason I'm not a good rep? Because I didn't speak up for my classmates?"

"The heck does being a rep have to do with sticking up for your **friends**, dumbass? Don't even know if I wanna look at that cute face of yours…" the young man scoffed.

Laurel couldn't believe what she was hearing. But looking at the faces of Rayya and the rest of the class--her friends, was more than enough to make the girl bite the bottom of her lip.

"Don't apologize, we want results!" Rayya cheered. "Win back our respect Laurel!"

"Why would you think you're bad at what you do?" one girl questioned.

"We voted for you so the least you can for us is deliver!" a boy agreed.

The growing noise pollution made it hard for the school's "Number One Girl", Amara Luna to enjoy her novel. Growing tired of the noise, the blond gave a reflective sigh before she slammed her textbook against her desk.

With everyone silenced, Amara turned to Laurel with an annoyed expression.

"You realize what your indecisiveness created Laurel?" she began sternly. "Our class has been questioned of our position. If you can't handle this now--"

"Windsprite, we're counting on you!" the young man cut in. "Get that new kid here and let's fight!"

"Wuh-You mean...you aren't mad at May?" Laurel gasped.

"You should actually get in on 'em, Rep. Messing with the new kids is always the best." One boy chuckled.

"The Johto kid is a good sport, we just didn't expect her to breakdown so suddenly." Another boy with a pompadour hairstyle replied. "Nothing like a certain show-off who came here **two months **ago and is **still **a Queen of Tact even after our scare tactics…"

Amara ignored this shot and continued reading her book.

Really, what was there for Laurel to say? Some of these people go as far back as kindergarten and still, she knew so little… The only thing she could do was spend the final months of her school year living up to the title given to her.

"…So what of seventh period?" Amara questioned to Laurel's hesitance.

(End Flashback)

--

"I can tell you'll fit in great…" Laurel confirms. "But May…I hope we can get along too!"

When May agrees, she's hands over a great deal of paperwork.

"Homework and a list of reports and tests coming up! The school year is almost up don't 'cha know!" Laurel reports cheerfully. "You got your work cut out for you, but don't worry, our class is one big wheel! That's why Amara will come by with all your cram work and further details!"

"…You…YOU TOLD THAT WEIRD GIRL WHERE I LIVE?!"

Seeing this, Laurel giggles. "I'll be there too so it'll be fun! You know, I never had a friend who was **erratic**… I hear they're actually the most interesting to be around!"

As Mrs. Hiromi chooses to respect her daughter's space, she only hears _a bit_ of the girls chatter. Even then, what little she _overhears_ is more than enough to make her hide amusement from her daughter's increase in hunger when returning to the table.

Despite the mood, Torchic escapes Mrs. Hiromi's hold to nuzzle against May's leg. She isn't expecting anything out of it; this is just something she wants to do!

May won't return the feeling anyway… That's okay, the warmth from their hug is something she'd never forget and that alone makes her happy. What the chick Pokemon **doesn't **see coming is May, after a defeated sigh, stares at her then sets her on the table before removing all material items. Stating, she looks better like that.

"My standards really have fallen…" Torchic hears May sigh.

But that shouldn't matter! Torchic chirps happily as the girl hides her embarrassment after Mrs. Hiromi's teasing.

_Just like the promises I said I'll never break, I went to school each day. Everyone is weird but they always keep things interesting!_

Two weeks after her sloppy start, May stares at her failed paper in utter defeat.

_But…I'm still not much of a school person…_

--

**Chapter 5- Heart Wave! The Reality Marble and the Hoenn Stars!**

--

"I'm hungry." May voiced. As it was her precious daughter, Mrs. Hiromi stopped cutting vegetables but couldn't help but stare.

"May… I know how you feel about the past but I think that bump on your head might be problematic."

"Bump? I don't feel anything, nya." May answered. "But sometimes I do get headaches if something is bothering me or if I hear really annoying noises; my head feels like it wants to split so I get a little tired afterwards, nya."

Even if the girl was smiling off the whole matter, Mrs. Hiromi showed further concern. "I want to schedule an appointment with a doctor." She said. "I know how you feel about medicine but I'm really worried about you!"

"…If you really think it's that important…I'll go!" May answered eventually. "Is it okay if I eat first?"

"Ah? No, no you can't just walk in unannounced; I have to schedule an appointment for you." Mrs. Hiromi explained. "I'll try to get one for as early as possible, but since really you want stretch your legs… Why not get cleaned up and properly introduce yourself to all our neighbors? They'd love to meet you, especially Mrs. Birch, I brag about you all the time to her!"

May stared at her mother blankly before holding her stomach and falling to her knees. Mrs. Hiromi returned the expression, crouched and faced her daughter dot-eyed.

"You just don't want to do this, do you?" she questioned blankly.

"I don't like the smell out there." May replied with equal standing.

"Well, sleeping like that WOULD make one hungry…" Mrs. Hiromi considered before having an idea. "Say, if you go out and do this bothersome task, I'll make you something really special when you get back."

As May was curious, Mrs. Hiromi emphasized on what she'll prepare.

(A bit later)

"Going to meet my neighbors, nya!" May called out cheerfully.

"Have fun!" Mrs. Hiromi called out with equal glee.

Getting some distance from the house, the first thing May noticed was LittleRoot's lone tree. Climbing that large thing let her meet some pretty amusing people last time. Too bad she had to rely on real exploration this time…

…For a small rural area that didn't have many people or conveniences there sure was a great distance between location and housing.

Some of the people May actually met proved themselves to be friendly elderly or middle-aged folk who enjoyed LittleRoot's solitude, as well as having a nasty tendency to ask for aid on tasks that, for some reason, involved their daily routines and personal lives.

LittleRoot also proved itself to be home to many small wild Pokemon who residents simply dubbed: "strays". These types simply scurried around the town for food, lazed about or, due to their easygoing natures, playfully tagged along with May until losing interest.

May hated to admit it, but trying to outrun those guys really made her appreciate LittleRoot's lush and hilly environment. It was also this method that took her to the front gate of the town's largest home.

Considering the stature of the place, May wasn't surprised to see a maid working diligently in the yard. As the maid was kind enough to acknowledge her existence with a smile, May felt she should return the greeting.

Running up to the gate the girl felt herself slowing down as the entire world around her faded black…

--

After some groaning, May awakens to meet the sun's warm light. When coming to, the girl finds herself resting in small patch of flowers that livens up the beat-up looking laboratory behind it.

Dressed in a sleeveless navy blue shirt holding a star within Johto style writing and black biker shorts, the barefoot girl groggily studies her surroundings before remembering today is Sunday; a Sunday with no extra classes. Since she remembers this at the last moment, Mrs. Hiromi already had plans to take Torchic to work with her due to past popularity.

Dying from boredom, the girl decides to go outside in hopes of something interesting then…back to the present.

"It's becoming pretty annoying; that little one…I even started to think about how we met…" May mumbles. Despite her words, she shows discomfort when hugging her legs. "Wasn't I the one who found it? I even started to be nicer to it, so why do I have to sit around by myself? That little one…**I **should be the one it likes more…"

As she spends more time dwelling on this, a lonely breeze brings about the sudden realization of her growling stomach. As well as a spiky-haired shadow that towers over her.

May remains silent when staring at a white-haired boy, better known to his friends as Brendan, who simply stares back in exasperation.

If you were already unfamiliar with the boy, meeting him once then seeing him now would become a throw off. While he still enjoys his look of a white school shirt (though this time unbuttoned) with a loose black undershirt, sweatpants and sneakers without those glasses he appears a lot more boyish, that black and red bandana Poke Ball design replacing them seems to frame his features quite well too.

"Hey, are you really gonna lounge around like that?" he complains. "The only reason I never said anything before was walking from here to wherever your place is will be a real burnout. You even came here without wearing any shoes…"

"Not wearing shoes is fine as long it's in a clean place, nya." May yawns. "And you really like wasting time on that busted lab so what was I supposed to do?"

When Brendan suggests anything that **doesn't **require laziness he instead sighs when noticing May's "convenient" time to fall back asleep.

Seeing little use in the situation, the boy walks away from the girl and to the steep hill separating the lab from the rest of LittleRoot where he passes time enjoying the rolling of clouds through the endless blue sky.

_It's funny; when I was kid this kind of life always bugged me. LittleRoot, the quiet little farm town where no one visits and nothing happens. But these days, that's what makes life here seem like such a paradise…_

Pulling it out of his top right pocket, Brendan stares at his Poke Ball.

Thanks to the advancements of Pokemon technology, developers found ways to deepen the bond between Pokemon and their trainers. By having the colored top halves of the Poke and Great Ball series refined with translucent materials, the trainer and Pokemon can gaze at each other when the Ball is reflected under the sun or when drawn close.

While there have been **some **complaints about the products overall decline in durability and rise in price, nevertheless! It is because of the spherical container's see-through red half Brendan can watch the sleeping of a creature, because of those exact advancements, came off as a funny cheeked four-legged creature with large fins on its head and rear in many blurred shades of red.

_I think the only thing better than small town life is this little guy. Well, not just him, but Pokemon in general._

_Right… Well y' see, Pocket Monsters, better known as Pokemon, are bizarre creatures that come in many shapes and sizes, can live everywhere and all have the power to manipulate nature itself. Sounds kinda nuts if you don't see it for yourself._

_Well, because of what Pokemon are some people keep them as pets, others use them for protection, while others see them as magical fighting pets. Regardless of what they're seen as, humans who choose to fight alongside their Pokemon partners in fun sporting events called Pokemon battles are known (and usually licensed) as Pokemon trainers. Any field they wish to purse with Pokemon from there is clearly up to them and the Pokemon who will work with them…_

_Currently, over three hundred Pokemon have been recorded worldwide with more being discovered everyday. Just where are these guys coming from? Or, is this the Pokemon's planet and we humans are the settlers? Maybe we're related somehow…_

_I mean, they lived alongside humans for who knows how long there has to be something about them… Hah, I was so fascinated about finding out what Pokemon are I even spent a few years in a Pokemon school._

_Well, I'm taking a break from all that anyway… Learning info and data is nice I guess, but nothing beats the actual trainer's story!_

Taking a longer look at the Poke Ball Brendan sighs. "What I really want to do is work this guy, y'know, get to know him better. But all he wants to do is lay around…Not really the greatest of stories in a trainer's life, is it?"

Giving another defeated sigh, Brendan releases the little creature from its spherical container.

Aside from the funny-shaped orange cheeks, there isn't a hint of red on the completely blue creature. Not only that, but it doesn't look the most enthusiastic about being released… Briefly turning to Brendan, the little creature runs off to join May in her flowery bed.

"…Lying about all day… Yeah, she can relate to that…" Brendan sighs. Though keeping an exasperated look at first, the white-haired boy eventually softens and decides to pull out a small booklet on worldwide manners from his top left pocket.

_As for that girl… Well, she's actually new here. It's been a little over a month since the time we first met… I'd rather not remember that… In any case, I'm pretty used to her at this point._

_It's something I'm always telling Laurel: If the person really wants to be known then they'll come to __**you**__. _

--

(Flashback)

_About two weeks ago, Mom had me run an emergency grocery-related errand in Oldale which I took care of pretty fast. The problems came when I was coming home. It was late out but it was nothing serious, just some older guys who thought it would be cool to corner me out in the open and get me to "loan" my bike for a joy ride._

_Those guys are they type who see strength in numbers but fail to see the beauty of small town life: By simply pretending they don't exist the most I'd walk away with is a cheap threat since any disturbance would attract neighbors or worse off, the Battery of Justice, who should be running her night rounds about now. _

_Clearly the one with the home field advantage wins! But then… that loose cannon new kid walked by and… Long story short, I panicked… Aah…I really ended up looking pretty uncool._

Running a cloth through the fountain water of Oldale Park, Brendan gave a small groan as he rubbed his right cheek.

"Don't see why you're crying, you only got that much." May criticized.

Hearing that, Brendan turned to the girl in exasperation. "I wouldn't have said anything at all if you didn't act like you were going to do something…" When May stared blankly he added: "I already know what you're capable of."

"What did I do? You're the one who talks too much! You're unimpressive too, so you really got lucky, nya."

What part of _"I was trying to protect them from you" _did this girl NOT get? And why did she talk like a Meowth/Persian? Well whatever, glaring at her in exasperation proved far more effective to Brendan than arguing.

However, the girl even proved that pointless as she sat on the bench focusing all her attention on a sheet of paper. Something that left her pretty depressed.

_Because guys of "my type" weren't worth it, I got to keep my bike at the cost of getting beat-up. Had it been just me, I'd just mark this as another regretful moment in my life and go about my business the moment I could move again. I really can't blame that girl; it was my own fault for overestimating her and the overall situation…_

"It's not my business, but if you're bummed out about failing a test just cry then get better." Brendan voiced to May's surprise. As he gained her full attention, Brendan looked away. "Like I said, it's none one my business but we all had our share of failures so just learn from your mistakes is all I'm saying."

_I…I won't…blame others for my stupidity… _

"Don't laugh." May muttered when handing Brendan her paper. And really, there was nothing to laugh about! Even if he wasn't wearing his glasses, some of the writing was **definitely **illegible, but the rest of it…he just couldn't understand!

Perhaps it was self-preservation, but Brendan uneasily faced the girl asking: "Umm…I know you're new here but…You're… Not from around here, huh?"

_To be honest, I really started to enjoy that girl's company. The only things I knew about Johto was it being mountainous and very traditional place located close to Kanto. I felt pretty bad for thinking harshly of her when she was probably living by her customs… I tried not to think too much of that though._

"-that so? Hoenn doesn't get cold enough for it to snow so I think you're pretty lucky to actually be around it." Brendan laughed. Taking a better look at May's failed paper, Brendan gave the matter a bit more thought. "I think your teacher was being a little harsh about the grading but even if you didn't know Hoenn's language system you should've used the International one. I mean, the only reason we can talk like this is because of that."

"Talking and writing are different…." May muttered.

Odd way of putting it, but Brendan shrugged it off, saying: "Well, this goes against my principles, but if you're really stuck with something, ask for help."

_Since I got so comfortable talking I forgot to say: ask anyone, but me, for help. Well, that can't be helped at this point…_

(End Flashback)

--

Still reading his booklet, Brendan frowns when coming across a chapter titled: "Making friends with those from Johto: Do and Don'ts". Reading a bit of it, the boy turns to the sleeping May then back to his book.

Taking the ultimate resolve of placing it back in his top left pocket.

_Ever since then, I've been helping that girl understand…umm, let's see… Ah, computers and the Hoenn and International writing systems. She does what she wants but dealing with her passes free time and since I always wanted to tutor in something it really can't be helped…_

Brendan snaps to attention when hearing the little creature's cry. He pales when watching the surprisingly strong little guy slowly but surely shove May out of the flowerbed.

"Su-such a heavy sleeper…" he mutters as May continues to sleep despite the forceful move.

Brendan gives little expression as the girl awakens to groggily crawl towards the flowerbed on the left.

--

(Later)

"Mudkip?" May questions.

Inside a laboratory that will always feel abandoned due to cracks, be it on walls or foundation stemming with vines and moss, a tutor along with his student and little blue mud fish sit in a table piled with books and snacks.

Ignoring comments about the Pokemon's lazy stature, Brendan nods. "Yeah, even if there's many different kinds of Pokemon, many League-oriented regions take it upon themselves to make the hardest to find Grass, Water and Fire type not classified elsewhere be their regional satellites. Treeko, Mudkip and Torchic are considered the Hoenn satellites but…" Brendan frowns. "The only Treeko and Torchic Prof. Birch was able to recover went missing some time ago so Mudkip has been pretty down without his friends to play with."

Even though the name "Torchic" has a familiar ring to it, May continues to stare at the sleeping mud fish until saying: "If it gets too fat you can always cook it. Trainers usually remove things not useful to them anyway, nya."

"…Alright… I respect your stance about Pokemon but," Brendan gathers his composure before continuing. "This is starting to sound more like a personal vendetta. I refuse to teach anyone who will harm my partner."

"Pokemon are boring, boring." May grins. When Brendan threatens to leave, May sweatdrops. "You don't be such a baby about it… It's just annoying…" she huffs. "Aren't Pokemon the ones doing all the fighting? How can they be okay with doing someone's work for them…"

The girl's expression shows further frustration before she continues. "What kind of skill comes from shouting a bunch of commands that don't work anyway? Even the weakest of Pokemon are stronger than any human, so why? Why do they let themselves be pushed around the moment they're caught in some stupid piece of metal?" she presses. "Are they really okay being with idiots who want power but hide behind **them **for that? **What happened to their natural state of pride?!**"

Slamming her hands against the table during her outburst makes a startled Mudkip jump. Since the mud fish jumps on Brendan's lap as a reflex, he shakes his head solemnly.

"Well, that's reality, not everyone is gonna think properly. But, you're not being fair here…" Brendan reasons. "Trainers really have their work cut out for them and can't travel through certain areas or fight off stronger Pokemon by themselves. We're only humans after all. Some get a kick out of the idea of risking life and limb just to something a Pokemon can do as if it was blinking, so that feeling of accomplishment means nothing." Not done lecturing his student, Brendan waves his index finger. "Also, as far as the whole "capture thing" goes: some Pokemon probably feel their loss was enough, while others take a really long time to finally respect their trainer. So, you're arguments might be nice on a protective point-of-view but pretty useless against someone who actually works alongside a Pokemon."

"Humans are humans, Pokemon are Pokemon!" May huffs. "If I had half that power do you think I'd sit still when losing to some guy who couldn't fight me directly? The moment they call me out, I'll jump them then run!"

"…You sound as if you **want** Pokemon to rise up against humans."

"The world is run on your own strength! Why do you think fighting settles everything, nya?"

"…You…sound like a nihilist… Or at least…like someone who has Pokemon envy." Considering the look of shock on the girl's face, Brendan confirms his theory while Mudkip yawns contently. "It can't be helped. Pokemon can do pretty much anything and there's a lot of people who work themselves to the bone to outdo them. They hardly succeed though." He chuckles. "But to actually meet one-"

"D-don't get big-headed calling me things that make no sense!" May counters. "I don't wanna be made fun of by some unimpressive guy who loves a lab that has nothing to do with him!"

For the time they knew each other, whenever a clash of beliefs is about to become an argument, Brendan would nip it in the bud by using large words that would confuse May or use reasonable logic that leaves her immobilized. However, she **is **learning, a month is all anyone usually needs to get to understand how a person thinks.

With Brendan the one in silence for a change, May can't help but flaunt her power-up.

"Ah? What's the matter? You're so caring for a place you won't get rewarded doing things for. You waste so much time on this busted place…" May shrugs. "Well, weird people can't be helped, nya?"

"…Yeah, doing stuff like this is a real waste of time when you're just some trainer and not an actual assistant." Brendan agrees weakly. "B-but I don't think that can be helped… This lab is Professor Ivan Birch's after all. He's the kind of guy who'd rather go out and form his answers over sitting down and theorizing all the time. He's a great technician too; working on an advanced Pokedex program that rumored to be the leader to greater generation… I actually want to have some involvement in the research field myself one day so…"

May remains silent as the boy takes time to find his resolve. "That's why… That's why I volunteer to help out with the odds and ends in the lab while the Professor and his assistant work." Brendan reasons before openly confirming that answer. "Prof. Birch may not be the most appreciated in his field, but he truly is a genius! I believe in that…in him… It's really annoying how he's brushed off so, doing this is my way of saying **thank you!**"

Considering the speechlessness on the girl's face, Brendan gives a weak smile while admitting his foolishness.

"Doing all that because you **just want to **help someone? I wouldn't bother unless Mom asked me…but I'd still… I don't want to look bad to unimpressive people like that…"

Her expression downcast, May's mood picks up when facing Brendan, stating: "Next time, I'll help. You're taking way too much of my time, nya."

Considering the mood change and the fact he said watching her lounge about kills his will to work, Brendan agrees.

_Though I'd rather not think about, things like this always make think back to what she said the first time we met: "We can get along"? Hah, no matter how I see it, I don't think I'm gonna like her version of that._

Placing the sleeping Mudkip on the table, Brendan decides cleaning up is far more productive than watching May gather her books and head home.

The same could be said on her angle.

_Well, whatever. I don't really see us becoming friends anyway. But, talking to others without a catch behind it really is nice sometimes… _

_Really wish it was always like that…_

--

(A few days later)

"That planetarium in Petalburg? That's nothing new." Brendan comments.

Spring's not even at its peak, but LittleRoot and her sister city face a heat wave holding the fury of summer's dog days.

It's this kind of sweltering period when all activity becomes creating ways to stay cool and do as little as possible. Brendan is no exception to this situation; trading off his favorite wear of multi-pocket black sweatpants and short-sleeve black shirt for grey cargo shorts and lighter short-sleeved black T-shirt, he enjoys his rest under LittleRoot's lone tree with Max and the twins, Suzie and Sally, not too far away.

That is, until Laurel came by shoving a flyer concerning that bland planetarium in his face…

"It's only been open for a couple months it's not fair to judge it like that. Besides," Laurel points to a special event advertisement on the flyer but quickly notices her childhood friend's squinting. "Brendan, your eyes are already pretty bad and with this heat-" the girl cuts herself off to give the boy stern look. "Why do you remember to wear your headband and black shirts but can't remember your glasses, Brendan?"

"I only need those to read sometimes, and this **bandana** is taking off my sweat." Brendan reasons.

"And that shirt isn't any old black shirt; it's an official, one-of-the-kind T-series bearing the Kanto League symbol! They were discontinued years ago due to infringement issues!" Max adds.

When Laurel blankly asks for the difference a silence follows. That is, until Suzie and Sally race to opposite sides of Brendan. He'd rather ignore why the two were making faces at each other.

"In any case Laurel," Max begins calmly. "My class already went to that place last week and it was boring! I'd rather do something productive like finish my math project than do something childish like going to a planetarium."

Laurel flashes the flyer in his face.

"…Brendan," Max begins. "That planetarium IS lame, but we HAVE to go there!"

The white-haired boy groans at this.

"That's right! Brendan, as the majority we think the judgment you're passing is too sudden. Especially since you haven't been there yourself!" Laurel argues.

Maybe it's the heat playing with his head, but Brendan could've sworn piercing glints replaced Laurel and Max's actual eyes.

Sitting silently to his left, Suzie tugs at Brendan's sleeve only to be ignored when Sally locks him in a tight hug.

_I don't really like this, but there's no fighting it…_

_It_ _doesn't matter how old you are, or if you're a boy or girl; once a person gets that glint in their eyes, there's no such thing as "no". _

Brendan manages to shake off Sally to give his tempters and annoyed look. "I already know about that outer space Pokemon!" he admits. "That's all local news talks about these days."

"So shouldn't that be enough to want to see it?" Max reasons. The eight-year-old snatches Laurel's flyer, pointing to a picture with of a warped-looking Rhyhorn. "See here, it says they have a Rhyhorn with real meteorite fragments infused on its body! And, its only Level 12 but its said to have a lot of power! They're even letting local trainers challenge it this week only! We can't afford to miss this!!"

Before Brendan can respond, Sally reclaims her grip, whimpering: "Noo Brendan don't melt away!" Something that makes Suzie's overlooked gestures growingly desperate.

"For someone who believes Pokemon came from another world, you really are being doubtful about this Brendan. We at least should go and gives this a chance." Laurel comments to the others surprise.

"Laurel, I'm impressed!" Max praises, adjusting his glasses in case he's seeing things. "Normally, we wouldn't hear anything in the interest of trainers coming from you… So, does this mean you're finally going to raise those Wurmples of yours into a Beautifly and Dustox? And, does this mean on oh, say…this summer vacation you're finally going to catch all kinds of Bug Pokemon like you said you would one day?"

"Not really, I just wanted to butter everyone up to wanna beat the heat and spend the day in an air-conditioned building!" she laughs.

"You're hopeless…" Max sighs.

"You're acting as if it's some kind of promise…" Laurel counters innocently.

The moment Brendan brushes them off, Laurel and Max bombard him with criticism all their own.

_You have to give in to what they want eventually if you like the idea of living in peace._

Even if it's too hot, even if this isn't the first time the others placed him on the spot for not wanting to do something for the sake of just not doing so, this time it feels…

"It's hot… Hey, Brendan… Do you think the sky is on fire?" Suzie asks.

No longer by his side, Suzie stands outside the tree's protective reach shocking all but Sally who cattily clings tighter to Brendan, claiming her sister only wants attention.

Suzie keeps her back to the group and points towards the North Gates direction. "Ah! Two fire Pokemon must be fighting underground! Everyone… Everything over there looks so wavy…Why?"

Despite personal hesitation, Suzie awaits no response when running off. Claiming she wants to see isn't her call anyway; Brendan already catches and carries her back to where she should be.

"Don't be stupid, Hoenn doesn't have many fire Pokemon." He reasons. "Stay under the tree or I'm taking you home."

Setting the sniffling six-year-old down, Brendan tries to make her feel better by ruffling her hair. Something to which Suzie tearfully responds: "You're a horrible brother… Brendan you dummy! I HATE YOU!!"

Brendan can only sigh miserably when Suzie runs off. Sally's attempt to cheer him up is appreciated though…

"Its okay, Brendan's a good brother; don't let that spoiled brat get to you." She smiles.

"W-well, it's not like this isn't the first time she said that… She'll probably get over it by the end of the day…" Brendan replies. "I'll buy her a candy bar just in case-"

"WHAT?! She's acts like a baby and gets treats? You're horrible; I hate you, stupid brother!" Sally huffs when marching off in the direction opposite her twin.

For some reason **that one **seems to pierce…

_People get selfish over silly things, that's what I think. But at the same time, they really do get their way one way or the other…_

Kneeling in defeat, Brendan feels worse when Laurel and Max, piercing glints in their eyes stronger than ever, comfort him.

_And when that happens, you're always the one losing out… Mm, that really can't be helped though…_

--

(That night)

With a strained expression, Brendan heaves a heavy sigh.

Due to reasons out of his control, the boy finds himself sitting on the family sofa of the Hiromi household. And ever since entering, he's heard chirps and dealt with a suddenly lively Mudkip jumping about in his Poke Ball.

"As long as you let it play in here, I won't mind." The voice of Mrs. Hiromi approves.

Sitting contently on the opposite end of the family sofa, the woman stops her run through a large book to give the boy an assuring smile. Brendan can't explain it, but being near this woman… gives him the creeps.

She seems nice enough, but the atmosphere around her made him feel as if he's actually with someone he already knows, but can't really put his finger on "who" or "why"…

Staring at his agitated partner proves less frustrating than this!

"You seem to like staring." Mrs. Hiromi comments, running her finger along the Poke Ball to both trainer and partner's uneasiness. Ignoring this, the woman points at her book. "You were really seem to be into the ones on this page. Studying your students thought pattern is what a tutor needs to do, but I won't question that weird taste of yours."

Brendan repeats the woman's last words as his eyes wander onto the topic: Two full pages of May, between the age of three or four, dressed in what can simply placed as a really loose "red-white" look.

"See, weird tastes. Well, it's my fault for forgetting what was on this page." Mrs. Hiromi sighs.

Though Mudkip shows further agitation, the feelings clouding Brendan virtually lifts away. "…She looks really happy; those clothes suit her pretty well too." He eventually comments.

"Riiight… really happy… Honestly, are those restricting things even attractive?" Mrs. Hiromi mutters before sighing in defeat. "Anyways, it's nice to finally meet my May's tutor. I'm rooting for great results!"

Though not the one to fall so easily into flattery, praise is nice… But accepting it wouldn't be the best move right now would it?

Perhaps this is why Brendan suddenly blurts: "N-no! Well, you're daughter… She's a fast learner and is doing her best! So my part is a lot easier because of her motivation to get better."

Super effective: Brendan Birch. Age thirteen. Due to the time he spent running errands and answering phone calls for Prof. Birch and his assistant, he's picked up a few tactics when it comes to saying what the public likes to hear.

And from the happiness on Mrs. Hiromi's face, it looks like this skill came in handy big time.

"I'm happy to hear that…" Mrs. Hiromi smiles before feeling a tad guilty. "You're doing a lot too and you're not really getting compensation for any of it, are you? Well, because of that, feel free to ask me anything you want to know about May. Don't hold back now!"

Brendan is taken aback by such a reward. No seriously, **what **kind of reward is that?!

Maybe it's guilt for earlier, or just the lingering idea of comfort talking to a familiar face, but looking at Mudkip, there is one question he wants to know…

"My, my I suppose that would be troubling for a trainer. May won't be able to make friends if she keeps on like that…" Mrs. Hiromi sighs. Flipping back a few pages the woman softens. "You don't have to worry about my daughter doing any of that. In fact, if you leave her in a place full of Pokemon she'll just sit there and stare at them callously. Ahn her closeness to her father are also strong cute points!"

After some gushing over the subject, the woman then begins to relive the time her daughter, at the age of four, climbed up a tree. Though crying the whole time, she gives hell to anyone who tries to get her down only because she wants to leave by herself.

Brendan doesn't know what to say to that, besides, self-preservation tells him to figure out why it feels like he's being watched.

Looking behind, the boy could've sworn he saw something orange race back up the steps. Pretending not to care, he ends up jumping when attempting to look again and instead, meets Mrs. Hiromi, back turned, and standing in front of him.

What he doesn't see, is the woman teasingly gesturing a lonely Torchic to go back to May's room.

"Ah, I think you should just endure someone different! It makes you look cooler when you do!" she addresses Brendan. The woman then takes it upon herself to flip through her book hectically until coming a cross a page that openly annoys her. "But for the record, my May's tutor, I blame _**them**_."

Brendan remains silent as the woman turns and gestures to a large photo full of Meowths and one content Persian sitting in the center. There were a couple more pictures too, those actually contained a very young May looking her happiest alongside the classy and scratch cats and vice versa.

"My husband considers those freeloaders friends of the family, but I won't see those thieves like that… Since we're on topic about poisonous things…" Mrs. Hiromi trails off while returning to her seat. "That restricting outfit was actually something my **mother **sent May as a birthday gift. Even though I haven't spoken to her since I escaped that poor excuse for a life I lived…"

As much as Brendan wants to change topics, or at least find an excuse to help him leave, the look on Mrs. Hiromi's face immobilizes all will. "_You can run anywhere within this planet my ungrateful daughter, nevertheless! God's divine hand will lead me to my beloved grandchild and deliver the punishment you ran away from all those years ago_, her letter said…" the woman's face darkens at the memory. "Incorrigible shrew…Cradle robbing fur-balls… If either you think I'm going back to that dreary excuse for a town with your horrid rules or let MY May get involved in your twisted lives you all can-"

"I-I'm… still sitting right here ma'am." Brendan cuts in uneasily.

"That's fine, I wouldn't be saying these things if I didn't want them to be heard, right?"

Sealing her words with whole-hearted smile, Brendan eventually swallows his confusion and agrees.

"May, welcome home!" Mrs. Hiromi greets.

As a result of the sudden mood change, Brendan blinks twice as he faces a surprised May. The boy's attention quickly changes to behind when he could've swore he hears excitable chirps before having to hold down his restless-with-a-new-vigor Poke Ball while narrowly avoid getting knocked over when May shoves her bag of groceries Mrs. Hiromi's way.

"Everything you wanted is right here. I…I hope it's the right thing, nya." May smiles.

Though in an awkward position, Brendan can't believe what he's hearing. Her tone is so soft-spoken, as if that's how she always talks. Luckily for him, Mrs. Hiromi takes the bags from her daughter allowing him to sit comfortably again.

"Did I really sound that heartless when asking for this favor?" Mrs. Hiromi softens.

"N-not at all!" May argues. "It's just… I don't like messing up…"

Brendan watches in slight amusement as Mrs. Hiromi points out every item-get her daughter botches up on the list but can't enjoy it as much as he should really…

Watching that girl struggle to convince her mother to let her go back and fix her mistake with such a flushed expression and devoted voice is troubling enough considering how she **normally **talks. But how the woman watches the girl with such intense adoration is disturbing even if she proves to be very kind….

In all honesty, Brendan **feels **awkward just being in the same room with them…

This would've been the perfect time to make an excuse to walk out but: "You seem to really like spices ma'am." Good-naturedly comes out his mouth instead.

While Brendan inwardly cursed himself, Mrs. Hiromi nods. "I've really become a fan of Hoenn spices. They're all so exotic and bring something to cooking that I can never get tired tasting!" she gushes. The woman then turns to her daughter a bit confused. "May aren't you going to say hello to your tutor? He even came all this way out to greet you."

Not bothering making eye contact with Brendan, May puffs her cheeks. "If I pretend he isn't here, maybe he'll go away…" she reasons to Mrs. Hiromi's confusion. "We don't have any lessons today and if he really wanted to say anything… he could've called first. Like we promised…"

"She's right; we really don't have anything scheduled today." Brendan adds when Mrs. Hiromi looks at her daughter with disappointment. "I'm actually here on behalf of Laurel who wants to know if your daughter was available this Saturday to go to the planetarium-"

Avoiding all talk about the outer space Pokemon, Brendan goes into greater detail about the trip, the time they leave for it, whose going and what they plan on doing. Again, making sure all discussion about the outer space Pokemon is inexistent.

Mrs. Hiromi is elated to hear this but frowns when May, despite this being the first time she's heard of such a place, softly shows no interest.

"Yeah, I told Laurel you'd say something like that." Brendan replies to May's growing discomfort. "I'm not too interested in going either but I don't really have a choice… and even though I guessed your answer, Laurel will know in my voice if I asked you or not…so…that is…"

"The powers of a long-term friendship, eh?" Mrs. Hiromi chuckles. "May aren't you interested in getting to know Laurel and your tutor a bit better?"

The woman sweatdrops as May escorts Brendan to the door.

Luckily for her, an angel named Torchic grew louder with her chirps grabbing Brendan's attention. As May tries to hasten his leave, he loses hold of his restless Poke Ball, releasing Mudkip in all his blue, Mohawk-finned glory.

The mud fish studies its surroundings before turning to its surprised trainer with an annoyed look and quickly snatches the Poke Ball.

"Wh-what are you doing?! H-hurry up and call it back!" May shouts.

Brendan is taken aback by her desperate tone but hastily tries to stop his partner. Had he more time to actually think this over, Brendan would say Mudkip was treating dodging his grabs similar to the games he enjoyed until recently.

Trying to get a grip on that type of slippery Pokemon is always tricky if it didn't want to get caught…

"What's with you…We're in someone else's home; where have your manners gone, Mudkip?" Brendan questions when he finally gets a hold on him.

Mudkip answers the boy by wildly wriggling free just to race under him and tackle his rear, knocking him over. With the pushover out of the way, Mudkip spits the Poke Ball somewhere to its right before scurrying about the Hiromi living room.

Since Mrs. Hiromi stands on the sidelines watching the situation curiously, the mud fish Pokemon almost gains access to the stairway. Almost, until May, on all fours, blocks its way.

Mudkip barley dodges the swipe the girl threw and tumbles back.

Not too sure how to deal with this one, Mudkip holds his ground with a growl. Much to his shock, his opponent hisses sharply and wastes no time lunging at him. Leaving the mud fish no choice but make a tactical retreat.

As his pursuer proves to be territorial and pretty effective for a human on fours, Mudkip decides to avert her attention by climbing on the family sofa and send an illuminating device near the left edge of it flying.

"Mom's favorite reading lamp! How dare you do that to her precious things!" May growls.

The girl reverts to her twos to race past Mudkip, who now has to avoid the recall beam from his trainer's Poke Ball, to save the item. May successfully recovers the item, but due to her sudden pivot on a messy floor courtesy of Mudkip, loses her footing and slides on her rear.

Even if Mrs. Hiromi is happy to know little harm befell her daughter, the affection the girl shows for securing an item she plans on replacing makes her sweatdrop.

The woman takes a more serious position when watching Brendan corner his Pokemon. While she **did **say earlier any mess made can be cleaned up, after watching the little guy in action…She sort of understood the white-haired boy's level of nervousness about the matter.

That and he seems to have very poor hand-eye coordination… His Pokemon let him inch closer for a catch, leaving no reason for his misses…

"STOP ACTING AS IF YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU WANT!!" May roars as she, after placing back the lamp where it belongs, jumps on the family sofa to gain momentum for a strong mud fish stomp.

Thanks to the sudden command of his trainer, she misses but is hit directly with the recall beam which **does **nothing but **did **a good job of agitating her nonetheless.

"WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT?!" she rages.

"Wh-What about you?! That could've killed him!" Brendan yells back. "You need to seriously calm down!"

May is taken aback by her tutor's outburst. She bites the bottom of her lip before arguing: "So what? Even if it came with you, if you can't stop it then I have all right to finish it!"

"…What gives you the right to do anyth-"

"My, my! It's hard to believe such a cute little thing could do so much damage…" Mrs. Hiromi voices.

Both youths stare in disbelief as Mrs. Hiromi grips a struggling Mudkip. May gives her tutor one last harsh glare before racing over to punish the mud fish while Brendan wonders how holding him like one would an infant, restrict it far less than being held around the waist…

Well, whatever the method, Mudkip breaks free, letting the skidding May take his place. Something Mrs. Hiromi allows with open arms.

As the mother cuddles her dignity-scarred daughter, Brendan bites back a little curse when rubbing his strained eyes after failing to recall Mudkip who successfully infiltrates the stairway.

_This sucks… This kind of mood really sucks._

"Mom please let me go! The little one-That slimy thing's gone too far! Please, please let me-" he hears May plea.

Brendan watches Mrs. Hiromi comfort her daughter with growing guilt. Even if his eyes still bothered him, the grip on his Poke Ball reveals--

_At first, I thought today was going to start, continue and end with me trying to beat the heat…That's uninteresting and a waste of a day. That's never a good thing._

"I'm really sorry about all this! I don't know what's gotten into him today!" Brendan says to the Hiromi females. "I…I promise to clean up everything after this!!"

"You'll get it this time! Fight well!" Mrs. Hiromi cheers.

He doesn't feel very well… just powerless. Yet, with that same drive, Brendan races up the stairs.

_Then the day picked up and became enjoyable. This was a far better way to end the day even if you didn't do much. _

_But now…_

Brendan doesn't need to follow Mudkip's footsteps…

His voice alongside frantic chirps echo inside of the room he feels safe to assume belongs to that girl; that same girl whose opinion he chooses to respect when stating Pokemon bore her…

Approaching the room is a simple task, there's no reason for his legs to get heavy… it's just some doll she probably has!

In this day and age, dolls are becoming more and more life-like. Maybe he's just upset about all the damage Mudkip caused…That has to be it, so all he has to do is open the door and--

_……On a day like this, I really don't know where it'll all lead from here on. Yeah, today sucks…_

"Tor…chi…c"

**To be continued**

--

(Notes)

Though I didn't really need to, I'm really happy about giving a feeling of "closure" to the school storyline. I originally wanted to squeeze it somewhere before the last two events at the end of the last chapter but since the situation already had a "complete" feel I didn't want to drag it on.

**1. **The title "Heart Wave" is actually the opening song to the Ryuusei no Rockman (Megaman Star Force in English) anime. Personally, I think the title more than did its job of introducing Brendan and the Pokemon as well as their growing involvement into Hurricane. As for the whole satellite talk, I couldn't help but take a shot at how each Pokemon game MUST have Fire, Water and Grass type as starter. Inside jokes aside don't worry; there is more of a meaning behind being a regional satellite that will be seen as we move on.

**2. **In the Pokemon Special/Pokemon Adventures manga I remember the characters as well as Pokemon themselves being able to see through their Poke Balls. But since those who may be reading this might be more familiar with game and/or anime canon I decided to imply manga mechanics in my own way.

**3. **When originally planning the story I wanted to create more of a unique feel between regions rather than simply the "Hot damn! New Pokemon/Gyms/League in that region/Regional pride" bit. So of course, the best way to do that is cultural/language barriers. I regret not going too much into it, but I figured creating a "International system" that everyone needs to learn outside their own base regions language system would make overall trade and communication between people from different regions hold a greater feeling significance.

**4. Stray Pokemon**- Wild Pokemon that, for reasons of their own, chose to settle within/around towns and cities. Because of this, they are quite docile and/or neutral around humans yet see little problem in entering their homes uninvited and taking what they see fit. Despite this, strays are **still **wild Pokemon, ironically enough however; most trainers tend to avoid capturing them.

**5. **On a fun note, the scene where May explores LittleRoot was my definitely favorite scene to work on this chapter. I visualized the whole scene looking like an Action RPG/Open exploration adventure mode. Looking at it like that, the end of the scenario was a "now loading…" process.


	11. Lost Wings Ia

**Disclaimer- **I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

Even if he was a helpful tutor, he needed to go, May told herself as she hurried Brendan to the door.

He was obedient about it at first…then he heard Torchic's chirping…

That damned little one… she's getting far too spoiled. So that's the thanks she gets for sacrificing her allowance on toys for her over buying herself that cool looking orb thing…

She didn't know what it did but it looked COOL! That ungrateful little…

"That's none of your business! You're only supposed to worry about **me **anyway!" May shouted as she gave her tutor a heavy shove.

May face faults when her shove caused her tutor to lose his balance along with the grip he held on his Poke Ball containing that annoying Mudkip-thing Mrs. Hiromi found cute.

Yelling at him wasn't going to fix anything, but why the heck was he spacing out? A trainer should get used to seeing pissed off Pokemon.

The problem was…that Mudkip-thing wasn't upset, just unruly…Watching it walk all over her tutor was annoying…

But all bets were off when it raced past Mrs. Hiromi and towards the stairway.

As it gave her more momentum, May got on all fours to stop that freeloader in its tracks. Since her hiss was sharper than a puny Growl, Mudkip gives up its bold stance and flees, allowing May to continue her pursuit on all fours.

This stance gave her more momentum; she never questioned that truth. But if she was someone unimpressive like her tutor then maybe… she'd be curious to how a human can do that too…

To her, this kinda stuff was just second nature, like fighting, eating and sleeping. But if she really had to think about the past…

…She remembered Mrs. Hiromi thinking her "nyas" are cute… That's sorta second nature too, but she forced herself to say it more often as it really did make the woman happy. But not just that, in her dreams, she sometimes gets--what were those things called… **Past visions**, of when she was really small; she couldn't even walk right yet but she was always around Meowths who were really strong but friendly.

They were Pokemon, but they believed in their own strength and answers to no one who couldn't block their path! Though it was weird, or maybe because she was so small and didn't know better, they felt more like family than anything else…

They taught her all sorts of stuff too, but she sucked too much to do it right. "It's not her fault; her species is naturally inept, meow."…She didn't even want question how she knew they were saying that… Besides…

"Mom's favorite reading lamp! How dare you do that to her precious things!" May growled when she snapped back to reality.

Reverting back to twos, May saved the lamp but slipped on a wet floor thanks to that little freeloader. A little bruise was a small price to pay for her Mom's night reading on her nights off. But that little bastard… It's still making fun of her tutor…!

"Wh-what about you?! That could've killed him! You need to seriously calm down!" was her thanks for trying to stop the troublemaker.

Hell, he even warned it away when she, after placing back the lamp where it belonged, used the family sofa to gain the momentum needed for a strong stomp just to get hit by that Poke Ball beam. And she got yelled at?!

May bit the bottom of her lip before arguing: "So what? Even if it came with you, if you can't stop it then I have all right to finish it!"

"…What gives you the right to do anyth-"

"My, my! It's hard to believe such a cute little thing could do so much damage…" Mrs. Hiromi voiced.

Both youths stared in disbelief as Mrs. Hiromi gripped the struggling Mudkip. May gave her tutor a quick glare before racing over to punish the troublemaker. However that ended in failure as it escaped, letting the skidding girl take its place. Something Mrs. Hiromi allowed with open arms.

"Mom please let me go! The little one-That slimy thing's gone too far! Please, please let me--" May begged as Mudkip successfully infiltrated the stairway.

"There, there you can't get them all." The woman said.

As Mrs. Hiromi wrapped a hug she couldn't escape from, she could only hear her tutor say: "I'm really sorry about all this! I don't know what's gotten into him today! I…I promise to clean up everything after this!!" before racing up the stairs himself.

It was! This really was the worst… He's a good tutor, but that guy is also-- She couldn't stop shaking…this nagging, stomach-turning feeling of something that will be lost and never come back if she didn't act now!

The aftermath rattled her very core, but to stop a feeling that eats away at her, May broke free from Mrs. Hiromi's grip to storm the stairs and reach her room!

And there he was: Her tutor, just standing there. She didn't question why he let the Poke Ball in his hand fall, or why he didn't pick it up. What really matters… What **belonged **to her is that silly orange little one franticly chirping on her bed.

Even though she looked happy dealing with that slimy little freeloader who, just as happily tried to climb up the bed sheets, May shoved past her silent tutor and squeezed Torchic protectively.

The act shocked Torchic most of all. Not wanting to even question the situation, the chick Pokemon hastily cuddled against the girl as if all life depended on it.

May's tutor, better known to his friends as Brendan, stood in awe at what took place. While Mudkip began to plea with Torchic's guardian to set his friend down to play, Brendan-

--

**Chapter 6a- Lost Wings Ia Girl's Dream**

--

(Present Time: Oldale Town)

Not even a snow cone lifts her mood, May sighs as she makes her way home.

With no weekend classes and a troublesome little one she needs to watch like a Fearow, May wouldn't even be wasting her time in the lame outside world had not been for the long overdue letters she owes to those in Johto.

…Then again, being outside means she can talk to the policewoman, and that's always a great thing! Even if May beat around the true-story-bush, that cool knight of justice still gives her reassuring words.

Still, such delicate words require great amounts of moral reflections and time to oneself, so seeing Laurel, Rayya and Amara waving at her from across the street isn't really the most comfortable of situations for May.

Especially since she knows quite well they just want something.

Despite this, she smiles and heads towards them anyway. The only reason she exists is to make strong ties after all.

And by the calming breeze passing resolve through her body, she can't deny that…

--

(Earlier: Hiromi Household)

_Ever since the situation with the other me, a lot of stuff has been bugging me. One of them is simple enough: After the time I've been in school and with my tutor I started it wonder if I'm any good at anything. _

_The rest is…It's really annoying! Lately all I do is ask myself tons of boring, boring questions that make no sense. I got really frustrated about them so I locked myself in my room until I could figure them all out. _

_Oh, the little one followed me but I didn't mind._

On her bed, May sat cross-legged as she stared down a curious Torchic who tilted her head to the side and stared back.

Hesitant, May slowly extended her hand towards the chick Pokemon who chirped blankly but inched closer. May didn't expect this counter and flinched. Her hand pulling back shakily, it took every bit of inner reserve available to forcefully rub the right side of Torchic's feathery face.

That gesture soon became softer and Torchic's left got attention shortly before May played with the chick Pokemon's tiny yellow wings.

Torchic was very happy.

"Don't get cocky, we're only like this because you're so hopeless, nya." May scoffed. "Pokemon are Pokemon and past is past so I don't care anymore anyway. You can stay here as long as you like, happy now?"

Torchic was very, VERY happy! She was taking May for granted but still went ahead and rubbed May's left arm affectionately.

May watched the chick Pokemon with a weak blush. It's not like she liked this or anything…this kinda stuff just became routine to her…besides, it's quite warm…

That little one's touch, that is…

"You really are a pest…" she admitted softly. May sharply turned the window's way when Torchic looked at her adoringly.

Out there, May saw those puffy-tailed stray zigzag Pokemon that live under the porch playfully chase each other about. It was a relaxing sight, but one that left a bitter aftertaste.

"…What was that about anyway?" May muttered when remembering how Brendan reacted to seeing the little one. Or well, didn't react, he just recalled that mud-thing and left real fast before May could talk to him. "What's his problem anyway? Does he think I'm a hypocrite or something? That's so dumb…" May weakened before growing even more frustrated. "THIS IS ALL SO STUPID!! Shouldn't a guy like him be **happy** that little one is so well off? He shouldn't be ignoring me like **I** did something wrong? Why don't **you **make up your mind about Pokemon, you hypocrite!"

"I thought past is past to someone like you, May." The voice of Mrs. Hiromi reasoned.

In the hallway, Mrs. Hiromi stood against May's door with a solemn expression. The only think that separated mother from daughter was the door locked from the inside and the mutual respect of privacy.

Regardless of this, Mrs. Hiromi awaited an answer. And after a silence, she received it.

"Past is past…but I can't forget important things…or stuff that won't leave me alone even if I try not to think of it…"

"That's true, but locking yourself away won't solve anything. Maybe tea will help?"

"Ah, I'm punishing myself. Go to bed without dinner is how it goes, nya?"

"WHO'D MAKE SUCH A HORRIBLE THING?!" Mrs. Hiromi snapped ignoring the fact it was still lunch hours. "No, I'm not okay with it!" the woman countered despite May's apology and reasoning that she needed to be alone. "How can you ask me anything so ridiculous? I don't need to see or hear you to _feel_ your confusion, May."

Be it intuition or the like, Mrs. Hiromi sensed the hesitance her daughter took as she stared at a worried Torchic for answers she'd never get. And because of that, Mrs. Hiromi placed her hand where the heart is.

"Because of the love in my heart and bond we share, I came to understand you best. So I always knew the past being past were just empty words from you." Mrs. Hiromi continued softly. "It made me happy, but you're not a very good liar. That's what makes you so adorably simple-minded." A bitter look grew on the woman's face as she remised days better forgotten. "…You were quite sensitive back then as well…You'd always got frustrated when things became too complex. But unlike then, I don't want any secrets between us! There's nothing I can't do when I know my family is involved, so trust in me, May!"

_"No matter how the weather looks I'll always look forward", "All living things have souls" and, "There's nothing I can't do when I know my family is involved"…_

_I dunno know why, but my mood always picks up when I hear stuff like that. It's the first time my mom ever said something like that but I felt instantly safe. It took awhile for me since I didn't want to scare her, but trying to not make her worry is upsetting her even more._

_I would've been a lot more okay with telling my tutor than my mom, but I went ahead and told her about my world, those nightmare scenarios at school and every little thing that ate at me… And since Ms. Terri told me she was into the paranormal when we used to live together, I'm sure she'll figure out something that'll help me understand this!_

"Sounds like you went through a lot sweetie… but, why didn't you turn to me sooner? I worry about you and I'd love to hear whatever's on your mind." Mrs. Hiromi argued.

"But that only works if I know you'll understand." May sighed. "None of it was a problem until now; I thought by keeping it all to myself I wouldn't worry you and make you hate me again." She quickly corrected herself when she realized she upset the woman with her earlier comment. "Besides, I'm not really comfortable talking about weird thing like my dreams with just anybody…"

"Are you referring to your tutor?"

May frowned as she rubbed Torchic's left yellow wing. "He's kinda avoiding me; it really bugs me that he's not saying why."

"That's sorta the point of avoiding you." Mrs. Hiromi voiced cheerfully, assuring her daughter that he'll come around when he's ready. "Anyways, you're still young, May. It won't happen immediately, but you'll one day find a purpose fit specifically for you, but for now, you should enjoy your innocence. That's what I think." She smiled reflectively, but uneasiness now brimmed in the woman's expression as she said: "However, concerning Astral… avoid it. That place isn't suited for anyone."

Astral, the place where the spiritual consciousness rests is a place suited for no one?! The woman's words shocked May, but she eagerly awaited an explanation.

"I think it was very foolish…" Mrs. Hiromi reprimanded. Biting the bottom of her lip, the woman hugged herself as she recalled memories best left dead. "I think it's the most stupid of thoughts to go through all of that garbage and **still **brush it off as a _dream_! There's no such thing!!"

She didn't know why, but even if entitled to her own opinion, May felt something within shift when her mother voiced those words.

"Are you listening to me, May…?" Mrs. Hiromi pushed. "Every moment you run off to those cursed illusions your existence is in constant danger! If your physical consciousness is destroyed then your spirit will merely wander until said requirements are met. However, if your spirit is crushed then it's all over! If you didn't create that link--" Mrs. Hiromi chose not to dwell on the past and instead voiced with shaken rage: "You fool…! There's no such thing as dreams or nightmares… it's all a sick source of enjoyment the astral wishes to play with humanity!"

Torchic chirped in protest! She didn't get what was going on but it wasn't making May happy! She was getting pale and breathing really heavily like she was holding something back! She's sick! That's what it was! She needed help not get yelled at!

Mrs. Hiromi didn't acknowledge those feelings. As blood trickled from her lips and tears rolled down her cheeks, she sobbed: "How can you share my heart when you acknowledge you're the tastiest kind of food to all those that roam in that horrible place! That very astral is trying to steal you away from me! …May…!!"

"MOM PLEASE!!" May yelled to the shock of Torchic, Mrs. Hiromi and herself. The girl weakened, but that didn't stop the rise of cool heat from overtaking her body. "…Here I exist…there I also exist. Dreams are dreams because they're not like things here… I knew I shouldn't have…"

"May…I-" the woman caught herself when her daughter's regret sank in. "…You relied on me for support, something I wanted more than anything… May opened her heart to me…and I… It's because I'm too weak; this me."

_It's okay, Mommy will completely make this up to you, you'll see!_ Mrs. Hiromi voiced as she left her daughter with guilt and an innocent little one.

Despite her promise, two hours passed and still no sign of her…

"…It was only a matter of time before she saw through me right?" May asked. "I was never really good with people. They were all too weird and I didn't really like talking to them…That guy was just different! He got lucky! But when it came to Mom…" in between wiping her tears, May's frustration reached its peak when having to scratch her overly moist skin. "**Darn it! **I really tried! She was the only person I tried my hardest to make happy! It's not fair!! It's not…"

Torchic felt helpless, but what could **she **hoped to achieve? That's right, it's not like **she** was May's source of comfort. No, that was reserved for her cherished teddy bear…

She hated that thing. It couldn't even return them but May hugged and kissed the sneaky bastard all the time! She really couldn't deny that… But, if that's really so then why hasn't she turned to it now? Hah, there's hope for her yet, the chick Pokemon wanted to believe…

…Until she was blasted by a burst of warm air that hid hints of coolness from May's direction.

Torchic held her ground and was rewarded with the realization that this wasn't about **her** wants when she caught the sight of very visible, very thick steam coming from May alongside the sounds of the sharp wind that left very visible cuts she treated like a horrible rash.

The fact the walls in the room looked "twisted" from how they usually did was also a reason for worry…

Torchic had no choice, even if it was gonna be another win for that sneaky bastard, she showed determination as she endured the sharp wind to move past May and drag over her most precious by its stupidly long red scarf.

Of course, May was quick to grip the scarf for herself the moment Torchic placed it on her hand and was successfully tossed to the other side of the bed by a strong gust of sharp wind.

At least she **helped **make her happy, Torchic thought sadly… And probably that bastard will get ripped a new one.

"…You too…" May voiced. "I never bothered being nice to you… I hated you! You're a Pokemon…but you still…!! What's with you?!" as the chick Pokemon hesitated, May faced her uneasily."I'm talking to **you**… TORCHIC!!"

As if reluctantly tossed away all principles, May bit the bottom of her lip before she tackle-hugged Torchic.

Or at least, would have if they didn't fall off the bed.

"Ow, owww… What were you doing by the edge anyway?" May whined at Torchic whose eyes were swiveled ever since the hug.

That annoyed May since **she** was the one who fell on her head! And she would've **loved** to chew out her little one more had not been for the strong pulse of distortion she felt.

She felt it again, but this time she could've swore the other side of her room had a brief ripple appearance. After what happened the last time she saw those things, May grew pretty nervous. However, she shook off her fears the moment Torchic, now up, rubbed against her.

As she owed her a favor anyway, May attempted to pet the chick Pokemon only to pull back when she noted the cuts on her arm followed by a strong stinging sensation within uncomfortable heat.

However, it wasn't until the girl felt a sharp wind nic her cheek and became unnerved from the blood that followed was when everything Torchic witnessed beforehand finally took its hold.

_It's hard to explain, but I started to feel really hot and really cold at the same time. I don't really get it myself and I was the one who went through it…_

_…If I could really explain it best I guess…Ah, it would be like those storm watches on TV! That's exactly how I felt! My body temperature felt higher than usual, but my skin felt really cold. So when the heat tried to pass through I couldn't sweat and the heat kept building up while fighting with the cold._

_It was really uncomfortable, that hot and cold feeling drove me nuts! I had a hard time breathing because of it and it started to feel like I was being torn to shreds from the inside. _

"…Don't be so selfish! You're already a good girl, isn't that enough…?" May acknowledged when Torchic desperately rubbed against her. It took time, but eventually, May turned to her little one with a warm smile. "…Tor…chic…nya? …I hope…I can give you a better name…one…da…"

Unable to hold back whatever ailed her, May coughed violently before her body burst with a countless amount of invisible cuts accompanied by an equal amount of slices ripping through the air…

(**…**)

As she heard the sounds of Torchic's frantic chirps, May groaned lightly.

That was some nap, her eyes were foggy but she felt great! Or at least not as tired as she's recently been…Oh well.

Ignoring her surroundings, May hoped to tease the chick Pokemon a bit before she quickly noticed her hands, as well as the rest of her body, was sorta…clear…ish…

Though she did find colorful currents floating about the room and from Torchic kinda weird too…

When she gave it a bit more thought, her room looked kinda off too; the starry twilight that replaced her walls that it is…

As the only solid thing from what she could see was something purple fogged up deep in her clear chest, May decided to check her mirror and gave little expression or honestly, lacked expression as her figure was home to an endless circulation of opposing air currents all pumping out from the cracked lavender sphere which slowly chipped apart as the very wind produced slashed its fog covering.

The other problem happened to be the red steam pumping from the back of her head. May didn't know why, but she somehow felt very uneasy about this form…

The girl's uneasiness grew when she realized this new form reacted to her feelings rather responsively as the opposing currents increased their flow and clashed constantly. This forced the cracked sphere to illuminate ominously within a darkened barrier its fog covering created.

But that state slowly reverted to normal when May watched the color currents she saw Torchic have tie themselves to her own.

They had a very soothing warmth to them…

"…Don't I seem **a little **suspicious to you? I worked pretty hard to teach you who's a good person and who's a stranger and here I wasted my time. I don't like wasting my voice, nya." May voiced lightheartedly, completely ignoring the more peaceful pattern the currents in her form took as well as the peaceful glow the cracked sphere made.

No matter what form she took, May was always going to be May and that's all what mattered as far as Torchic was concerned. Besides, she saw the whole situation, not that it mattered, because she was too busy loving the breeze emitted from May as she tickled her.

May enjoyed it too. Even if touch was out of the question, if this is one of her dreams then she seriously leveled up! All those boring exercises and meditation periods with that crazy angel paid off. Hell, if May thought back enough, those "currents" she saw were actually the motions of "waves" and "chimes" and this form could be some kind indestructible armor, so freaking out was pretty stupid when she's been through weirder.

"But why does it have to be wind?" she wondered aloud. "I'm more of a fire person don't you agree--This starting to lose its novelty, nya…" May grumbled after a failed attempt at touching Torchic's beak.

Torchic agreed.

"Mom's gonna get pretty mad too…I wasn't supposed to be sleeping. But we get to play in a supped up version of my world, what's cooler than that, nya?"

Torchic was worried.

Through May's body of currents, the chick Pokemon saw a purple, sharp-fingered creature with a red gem-like thing stuck on its torso standing there completely oblivious to its surroundings.

It seemed Pokemon enough, she figured, but those large blue gems it had for eyes flickered in a way that made it way too scary to want to talk to…

"What's wrong with you? Have you already forgotten who this is, nya?" May asked, surprising both Torchic and the creature when she went on all fours and instinctively kicked it. "Hah, bet you weren't expecting that!" she remarked when picking herself up. "Not very smart of you attacking me while I'm in my indestructible state, I don't have much, but I can **feel **your presence pretty well, you lose!"

Even if she was the most surprised about the outcome, May stood proudly as the creature, or as May preferred to call it, the _purple gem-thing_, not just because of its gem-like eyes and chest marker, but also due to the tiny red, blue and green ones on its back, shook off the hit and scuttled back to its original spot.

That pretty much freaked her and Torchic out since it was perfectly fine on twos not too long ago… or maybe it was the eerie revealing of its sharp, pure white teeth when doing all that was what got to them…

Nevertheless, its up and its eyes were flickering again. Torchic was scared but she was ready this time! After all, no matter how inspiring it felt to watch May, she also watched the pain she went through to end up like that.

The frustration of being unable to help May made her stomach burble… Her body felt like an inferno but she didn't care, it's not like this was the first time! The chick Pokemon's feathers ruffled as her voice became disfigured from the sharp gurgles that came from her throat.

"What you doing?! That thing might be dangerous, get behind me before you get hurt!" May snapped.

The creature, still in its position, cocked its head to the side before swiping at Torchic. However, the only thing the chick Pokemon felt was the unsettling breeze May emitted when she took the attack and tumbled back.

Torchic calmed down but it seemed that purple gem-thing could damage her as well, May noticed as she held her wound. It really hurt, but she wasn't bleeding, per say… just more of that red steam…

That got the purple gem-thing interested as it opened its mouth in a freakish way and tried to, from what it looked like, suck it up.

When it actual got a taste, the purple gem-thing's gem-like eyes flickered. Showing off its teeth once more, it stood upright and remained still as its eyes continued its show.

"Sableye might appear malevolent but they're probably the friendliest of their type." A voice that sounded like a stern Mrs. Hiromi replied. "It's my own fault for not introducing you all."

As the door opened May and Torchic turned to see the all too familiar Mrs. Hiromi with a large tray holding her favored tea set and some snacks.

"I'm sorry if I made you wait, May." She said as she placed the item on May's study desk then moved to pet the purple gem-thing she called "Sableye" and properly introduced him.

Upon the woman's entrance the cracked sphere within May lit up brightly, as if excited about her arrival. So excited, that May's whole form was engulfed in a bright lavender glow as tiny wind particles abandoned May and headed towards Mrs. Hiromi.

They were brushed off though, and even if she didn't get what happened, May couldn't help but feel a bit saddened by that…

Even so, it made no sense why the woman was here, but everything about her still felt really elegant…

The first thing that caught May's attention was the bottom; it seemed like really loose trousers that go up to the ankles, but hakamas hold quite a bit of significance in northern Johto's tradition. And Mrs. Hiromi had a violet one! May never even knew there was such a color! Her kimono shirt was primarily black for the most part, but the brown and gold leaf patterns really complement the woman's love for year-round autumn clothing.

"I don't really get it, but it's really nice to see how Mom looks in my dreams, nya."

"Even now you still wish to treat things as you like? I never knew I was raising such a half-assed child."

Torchic, as well as May for the matter, were taken aback by the woman's choice in words. Not just that, but the look she gave from the corner of her eyes; that fierce and bitter sapphire glow that voided the usually kind and sincere glitter her eyes held unsettled them both.

However, neither voiced against it, especially when the woman faced them with greater intensity.

"I must be quite knockout. But May, you should really stop releasing those wind sprites so casually; they're an integral factor in your makeup. Your body is in horrible enough shape as is." Mrs. Hiromi voiced after a new set of wind particles pulled out from May just to be disintegrated by an electric field generated by the woman.

The woman ignored the shock she received and better studied her state of dress.

"Well, I suppose it IS a bit lovely, but this is to be expected. These eloquent fingers of mine can even make restricting things like this appear elegant." She half-smiled. "However, no matter how beautiful my craft, they will always remain ugly; they are ugly because carry nothing more than memories of days imposed unto me by birth and I hate them. These restricting things…" she mused bitterly. "Just a carried over remnant of a culture the people of that dreary town were forced to escape over five hundred years ago… I have no good memories there. Living the life I once had in that dreary town, that is."

After another random appearance of her electric field from another failed wind particle attempt, the lavender glow that engulfed May dissolved. The girl was beyond noting that, she was more taken aback that her mother… really wasn't being her usual self…

She sorta had issues with modesty too…

"Torchic," May voiced when Mrs. Hiromi took the chick Pokemon and cradled her in her arms. "I found out her name is actually Torchic. We should…"

"You wish to be babied a bit but you bounded yourself to a very difficult person. How sad." Mrs. Hiromi said to a confused Torchic. "It's been said that the strongest ties between a human and Pokemon aren't forged, but predetermined. That being said, ghost Pokemon usually bless newborns in that dreary town not only to unlock their spiritual potential but also determine those worthy enough to seek them in a trial years to come."

"I don't really get what you mean but-- Wh-Wait a minute!"

"A little one is fine too."

Even if her cracked lavender sphere resonated weakly from the situation, May hesitated. The tone of voice and even the brief smile as she said that mirrored the tenderness from the Mrs. Hiromi she knew.

Torchic felt the same but turned to May with a worried look. That's all she could do when the woman wrapped her in a tight hug. It wasn't one of her usual playful one's that Torchic loved to get… It felt…empty… just a cheap gesture of touch and that made her sad.

"Mm. A little one is fine indeed," Mrs. Hiromi voiced reflectively. "But May,"

May cried out in pain when pushed back by the sudden emergence and outburst from her mother's odd electric field.

The weak blinking from the cracked sphere alongside the slowdown of currents only emphasized May's condition as electricity crackled around her. Likewise, the heavy resonation followed by an inner storm revealed the girl's heightened adrenaline when she managed to get a glimpse of a felled Torchic.

"We hardly have time to ourselves these days."

**A horrible act of cruelty without batting an eyelash! Is this really Mrs. Hiromi?**

** End Chapter 6a**

--

(Notes)

Heh heh heh heh… Hahahahahaha!! I don't remember how long it's been, but it looks like I finally got a chapter added to my belt!

It's been a while since I posted and while I have a few tidbits to say most of them relate to **Chapter 6b **anyway. So instead I'll say these:

**1. **Did some word purging: In previous chapters I had a word "psychical" running about… Yeah, that was a VERY nasty typo on my part. The actual word is supposed to "physical" sorry about that all…

**2. **Sableye, I've always been interested in the little guy due to its design and the info based around it. Really can't help but feel a tad sorry for it after reading its Bulbapedia entry. With that said, I was always trying to wonder how I can get a guy like that into the story so I partnered it with Mrs. Hiromi.

But why is the darkness Pokemon here? And why is Mrs. Hiromi behaving the way she is? Who is she, really? A world of thrill, shock and suspense await next time…

**3. **Thank you ACC-M of the PokeCommunity (PC) boards. You're tense guide helped me run some much needed repairs to **Chapter 5**.

**3b. **And because of that, I finally decided to run heavy repairs/rewrites within **Chapter 0s**. Mostly tense/wordiness changes to the best of my ability and rewrites to the end of **0a**, all of **0b** and a better written epilogue for **0c **giving it more of a feel of a standalone story before a major one.

Glad I did it actually, it feels a bit more consistent (and I can look back to it with a full smile). Although I'm currently wondering if I should make the read optional and just place a "jump to Chap 1" at the start. Giving readers the option to skip the short story and come back to it anytime they like…

Oh, about the bolded text before and at the end of the chapter… Well, you remember how I said if I had art talent I'd make a caption saying (blah) to make it feel more like a shounen manga/comic book? I decided to stop hiding behind that excuse and see if I could do it for real.

But it bothers you all enough; I'll give the call to go back to the old way. I'm not usually the most willing to budge when it comes to reader commentary on story/character content that they have issues with but I'm quite fine with (writing/literary mechanics is a different story) but if it really "detracts from the story"… It wouldn't be right to screw with you guys…


	12. Lost Wings Ib

**Disclaimer- **I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

"Mm. A little one is fine indeed," Mrs. Hiromi voiced reflectively. "But May,"

May cried out in pain when pushed back by the sudden emergence and outburst from her mother's odd electric field.

The weak blinking from the cracked sphere alongside the slowdown of currents only emphasized May's condition as electricity crackled around her. Likewise, the heavy resonation followed by an inner storm revealed the girl's heightened adrenaline when she managed to get a glimpse of a felled Torchic.

"We hardly have time to ourselves these days."

**Dressed in elegance with ferocity overlapping her usually caring features, the enchantress that placed Violet City under strife reveals her true nature!**

"You…Wh-What was the point in that?!" May yelled at her so-called mother.

"Are you having a nice _dream_, May?" Mrs. Hiromi asked curtly. "But I'm sure at this part; you'd wonder why you haven't awakened yet. After all, in your eyes, **I** am not capable of murder. The merciful me, that is."

"I don't care about that! Dream or not, you had no right to do that!!"

When the woman repeated May's words half-amused, her electric field popped up three times and lingered the third to counter the same counts of wind particles that came her way.

"You want me to stop _that_? Impossible." Mrs. Hiromi scoffed. "This barrier is nothing more than a miniscule first line of defense. I cannot stop something that is triggered unconsciously. Just as your wind sprites trigger without your knowledge; they are only trying to assimilate themselves back into their original body."

Though silenced, May's cracked sphere resonated brilliantly. All currents within the girl came to a sudden halt just before reactivating with greater zeal than before. Not only did the already foreign red steam gain momentum from this, but many currents within the girl leaked out as well. Both sides became the wind particles the cracked sphere needed as it placed the girl in great pain by shedding its fog covering to muster some apparently climactic particle-based beam.

…Which was canceled out when Sableye's sudden image flashed before May. The "fake out" brought the girl back to her senses, but stunned her long enough for Mrs. Hiromi to knock her flat with a **conscious **electric field burst.

"My, she was destructive in the past, but never possessed anything of **that** level." Mrs. Hiromi voiced as if sour. "Apparently, she's had room for considerable development during our time apart. But, she seems far more vulnerable all-around, so she's become weaker as well." She furthered half-amused. "Hm, you're as neurotic as ever, May."

Sableye approached Mrs. Hiromi who gripped Torchic tightly. May wasn't maimed; regardless of the change, she belonged to her after all. The woman just didn't see what the girl could gain by laying there, **ignoring her **and staring at that bland twilight…

_It was at that point, I realized something._

_No, no matter what she's done, something told me that IS my mom… And acting like she's not won't get me anywhere. But she's not the problem no matter how mad I am at her._

_This place…this place is really my room. Everything about it…I want to say it's a dream, but it's all like that time too: Body and spirit, everything of me was taken from the policewoman's watchful eye and to a miserable no-hope place._

_What I felt I had nothing to do with it… That crazy angel preached over and over about how stuff like "will" and strong feelings shape what kind of people we are and what is experienced in Astral. You can bleed and get hurt too, but how much of it you actually feel depends on how strong you are._

_That isn't the case with that place, this place too! What makes them different is-- I'm hungry… I locked myself in here all day so me and Torchic missed breakfast and lunch. Even if I'm in this dream-like body I can actually feel my stomach acting up._

_It's not like that in my world. I can eat and drink all I like, but it's not like I can taste anything or even feel being hungry or full in the first place. I don't have to worry about these kinds of physical problems there… Also, this body… _

_It acts like wind but I don't feel any different than normal. And, in my world, I only think the feel of an endless green meadow would be nice, it's not like I can actually feel the grass under my fingers. _

_Nothing like this rug; I can feel myself rubbing against it. And this whole room… it has **our **scent…Me and Torchic's…_

_It's like I'm awake but not awake. This could be dangerous._

"I see you're finally catching on, May. Maybe you aren't so half-assed."

Though not in the best shape, the currents within May ran their process to emphasize the shock felt when Mrs. Hiromi loomed over her.

The woman ignored this and held no emotion as she sunk her hand into the girl's chest and gripped the cracked lavender sphere.

Of course, May was in an unimaginable amount of pain.

"Are you enjoying this place, May? A world that perfectly emulates the essence of your so-called dreams but truly exists within the boundaries of our physical existence! I've apparently grown severely out of practice. Usually, forcing open a small rift between physical and astral would have been child's play for me. But this was all for you May, so don't hold back on my praise!"

"_**…Kuugh!! **_I…_Nngh! _Torchic… Wh-Why isn't--"

Mrs. Hiromi's expression tightened as she pumped electricity into her sphere gripped hand.

"I take it back, you're utterly half-assed. Blindingly so," she remarked. "May, the only reason I must go to such lengths is due to your own inability to fully grasp the situation unless under some form of turmoil. You're willingness to always endure annoys me. It's childish and a factor of mortal ignorance, you weren't intended for that…You defeat the purpose of your existence…"

May's pained cries grew louder as greater pressure was placed on her cracked sphere.

"You… For you to crumple so pathetically like this, you…" the rage flaring within the woman eyes calmed. "You really have lost all trace of those days… So you really have-"

Be it stress or the reserves found within one about to embrace death, Mrs. Hiromi furrowed her eyebrows when her daughter successfully gripped and squeezed the left side of her face.

"…Even if you are my mom…I… I won't forgive that!!" May hissed. "I_-_I don't care if that's your true face…! Mom you…_Guh! _Didn't YOU tell me that I should find my own path? My own calling? Didn't you tell me that, Mom?!"

"So…even after an _astral reset _you **still **wish to kill me?" Mrs. Hiromi smirked bitterly. "If it wasn't for your horrid degeneration I'd say you'd actually have a chance at this point…"

"_Kugh! _I'm not doing this because I want to, but I don't wanna die either…!" May growled. "…I never thought Mom was weak…you're amazing to me and I didn't doubt it was you for a second! ….So now, out of nowhere…I'm suddenly supposed to feel okay when I see you act like this…?" the girl gripped her mother's face tighter after a sharp cry of unsuccessfully suppressed pain. "Ev-Even if she is a little one… do you think busting up Torchic like that **wouldn't **make me mad? _Ngh! _Just stop with the act and answer me straight like you always do! PLEASE!"

"…Is THAT what you desire?"

"I'll pull your face off if you don't!"

Mrs. Hiromi's eyes briefly flashed with amusement from her daughter's bold approach; **her** true nature. There really had been a change, but was it just because of lost memory? The Mrs. Hiromi facing May had to find out…

"Come now, May. You mean to tell me that truth **isn't** the most obvious?" Mrs. Hiromi provoked.

"…I'm warning you…"

"Yes, and I'm **telling** you, you are half-assed." Mrs. Hiromi countered. "Just look at what you done to your beautiful body; it used to be the most glorious of sights to behold. But your need to endure, to defy your means and distance yourself from the currents of others now reduce you to nothing more than see-through lava lamp!" She voiced with disapproval.

Despite the threatening grip her daughter placed, she wasn't giving it her all. Mrs. Hiromi however had something she wanted to see, and thus, placed greater sparking pressure on her child's cracked sphere.

"And that red steam is just a further sign of your corrosion… Only the dark matter that binds a ghost type to our world can create such marks. You were careless! But of course, reverting back to normal is quite simple. After all, a breeze always dies down when lingering in one place for too long. Yet it remains grounded until it cleanses what holds it down. You're no different."

"…I-I'm no different?" May voiced weakly. "…Wh-what are you trying to say? Wind is wind-"

"Yes, and wind is you. You're a spirit of wind given a flesh and blood form based off my image. A dream within a reality." Mrs. Hiromi explained mechanically. "And that _other you_,as you cutely put it, WAS nothing more than a defense mechanism that you laid to rest. I'm honestly surprised you still exist despite the inevitable conflicts between it and the OTHER defense mechanism. But at least, I finally know the source to your messed up morals back then."

"…I am…wind…? But I exist…"

"Because you came from the elemental that shape every humans heart. The hurricane in my heart, I bestowed it unto you. Your meaning, your goals and purpose were all meant to suit my own. In other words, May, you exist for me."

--

**Chapter 6b- Lost Wings I Girl's Dream**

--

As if triggered, the cracked sphere within May resonated violently. Creating a powerful clash of opposing currents that were once about to dissipate. And as she watched these results, Mrs. Hiromi's expression greatly tightened.

"It's funny, this outfit is so well recognized, and even a detached region like Hoenn finds it appealing and exotic. Yet, when it comes down to the actual symbol such a restricting thing stands for they all run a blank." Mrs. Hiromi muttered. "It means to be chained down, to adhere to a causeless purpose and exist along the borders of hell all for the sake of natural balance. Being "alive" means little when your "job" focuses on the beyond. Even the region which my group originates no longer refers us accurately. To this world that has forgotten its purpose; we are merely **mediums**, the _blessed _marionette messiahs that tend to an invisible ghost world…"

"Me…diums… messiah…Mom is…"

Mrs. Hiromi maintained an unrelenting grip but released her sparking offense. This left her lower left arm open to the onslaught of vengeful currents generated by a strong, yet eerie resonation from her daughter's cracked sphere.

Even when her lower left arm became ravaged flesh, Mrs. Hiromi endured.

"You're little one is alive and rests…" she voiced softly. "She reminds me of the current you; the current and greater you I've grown to love most… I see I've committed a great wrong…" she admitted. "As much as I want to reset it all, gain a new chance, I cannot keep running…nor should I rob you of the ties you created… It could lead to disaster but- No, if that's the case, hope to be reborn. Hope for that, May."

Hope to be…reborn?! But isn't one life all a person has? That impossible request being imposed onto May was made by her own mother?!

Regardless of the context, a flicker of sadness flashed within the unusually cold woman's eyes before both, mother and daughter were engulfed in a powerful release of a conscious electric field burst…

(**…**)

As she felt Torchic's warmth travel throughout her body, May groaned lightly.

Everything seemed the same as the last time she reawakened, but this time, she had Mrs. Hiromi, still in that state, contently sipping tea on her bed. The woman tried to sweet talk Sableye to do the same but the Pokemon showed little interest in the offered selection.

May felt a bit of relief when she saw Torchic unscathed. The chick Pokemon's turning to her cheerfully while holding a cracker in her beak only tempted May to tease her but both knew how far that would get them. Flashy new purpling outline around her or not…

…Okay, that was another thing to add to her differences list. And while she was still in THAT form, she didn't seem so clear…ish.

Though Mrs. Hiromi suggested it, May continued her bout of déjà vu by checking her mirror. She was still a body of currents, however she appeared a lot more visible thanks to the strong, rather animated, storm taking place from within along with her actual figure which was further emphasized by the strong purple glow generated by a brighter, better conditioned lavender sphere.

Adding on the lack of red steam and the greater feeling of status, May found herself turning to her mother.

"No need to praise me, preserving you is my absolute priority." Mrs. Hiromi answered. "It's just been too long since I've been around such a disagreeable setting and since you pissed me off beforehand, I guess I let my emotions get the better of me. Something the merciful me would do…"

"…There a lot of things I wanna say and do to you, but praising you isn't one of them." May countered. "I wanted to find answers but I feel more lost than ever… a little mercy would be nice…"

"Mercy is inexistent in astral, so be courteous to the festive spirits of autumn for what you are about to receive." Mrs. Hiromi smirked darkly. "_Ahem_, ignoring the physical existence for a bit, astral is… Actually," she wavered. "I don't think I can sum up astral without the physical, as astral is our world's mirrored paradise."

Though she continued to hesitate and refute herself, the woman eventually faced the duo of May and Torchic with eyes of faded light. "Regardless of the origin, what can be confirmed, May, is astral being the generator to all forms of magic, natural and spiritual energies. Those powers can range from raw yet potent to completely ethereal. And, as you noted earlier, this place, though nothing natural, borders properties of astral and physical." She explained. "Normally, worldly and astral elements cannot share the same ground, yet the middle of the three astral layers exists with hardly any conflicts between either ends."

Torchic blinked twice and studied her surroundings. She DID feel weird being in this place but it WAS May's room all the same… she was sort of in the middle…

"Mm. You go to school, don't you? I'm sure you must've learned a bit about our planet at this point?" Mrs. Hiromi scoffed when May innocently questioned the idea of layers. "Astral, like our world and its layers, is split into three primary layers: The Zone of Ascension, Fractal and the Astral Plains respectively."

It (probably) wasn't May's fault, but Mrs. Hiromi grew frustrated from the girl's innocent observation of her surroundings. "**Fractal**, as this zone is called, is considered the link to the world beyond." The woman snapped. "This is because it's the only layer where the barrier to the physical realm is practically nonexistent, so any person with a decent enough level of astral comprehension can suffer from _astral exposure _and, if not looking like a lunatic for others, can potentially walk right into fractal as if they never belonged to physical realm in the first place." She explained. "Unless prepared, this can become quite disastrous as fractal is also a breeding ground to all unholy apparitions, not to mention those waves-motion and chime-motions which feed off humans powerful emotions, if not the human themselves."

The lavender sphere within May glowed with a dim light as she remembered her own uncomfortable experience. Noting this, Mrs. Hiromi eyes wavered briefly before she narrowed them.

"The bottommost layer known as the **Astral Plains**." Mrs. Hiromi continued. "As you've already learned the hard way, May, I'll skip all the technicalities and get the point: Our spiritual consciousness cannot differentiate between itself and the physical. Thus, unless forcefully removed from the physical consciousness, usually through an unforeseen death, the spiritual consciousness will be fooled into believing whatever **it **sees is what it is actually going through."

If her form had eyes, May would blink twice at this, but the unsettling movement from the animated storm within covered any and all emotions felt.

As she noted this, Mrs. Hiromi grinned.

"This is the trick of the fatigued physical consciousness and what it means to _dream_." Mrs. Hiromi justified coolly. "Because of man's ability to create their own fates, the Astral Plains is powered by these desires and is said to be the greatest gift left by a great power; allusions of bounty and blessings promised to the children of this world through **astral projection**. This is all I'm willing to explain."

"Nya? Hold on, what about that last zone? That ascension place, what do you know about that? Or at least go into some detail about all that other stuff. I--"

"That's not important to you." Mrs. Hiromi answered. "I'm telling you everything from a mediums perspective and mediums rarely act upon matters concerning the Zone of Ascension unless it directly threatens the here and now. Mediums primarily exist to keep the balance between this world and the two lower layers of astral. We are the mediators of the middle way; neither the spiritual nor physical is of greater value to us. It sounds cliché but there you go."

Despite the mixed silence, Mrs. Hiromi pressed the situation: "So, do you get it now, May? The pointless dangers of this world and what you bring when coming here as if it were some place to play?"

"No, I don't understand that." May huffed. "And, I don't think I can help that either… But, it's good to know Mom isn't so half-assed after all. You redeemed yourself completely. This you, that is, nya."

Mrs. Hiromi narrowed her eyes at her daughter for that bold approach but reeled back when she moved over and placed her hands on her cheeks.

Though her expression revealed clear annoyance, the woman blushed and didn't hesitate to caress her daughter's hands.

"Don't rate me on your own ridiculous scale." Mrs. Hiromi replied. "I have no interest in telling you about astral reset or the life before your most recent one."

"Then I'll ask someone else. Past is past anyway so I really don't care, nya." May countered.

"Cut the bull! I know you don't believe in that!!" Mrs. Hiromi snapped. As her eyes glittered with amusement, the woman released her hold on May's hands and gripped at her wrists in attempt to push her away. "Tsk! Since you're all for that little one why don't you go cradle her to your heart's content! You're capable of that now."

"I'm just trying to be grateful until the Mom I know comes back! **You're **the one who shouldn't get comfy!" May snapped back, clinging onto her mother's cheeks to the point she tugged at her right.

"I-I forgot how much of an ill-mannered little brat you could be! Y-you…" Mrs. Hiromi turned to Sableye who watched in neutral amusement. Torchic's allegiance was already set as she tugged at her hakama. "Y-you… FOOLS! M-making fun-- I mean a mockery of me like this! D-Do you know who I am to all of you?!"

Though her tone and choice of words were of the Mrs. Hiromi she was most known for, the woman somehow maintained her stern composure. Nevertheless, she was truly enjoying this, that's why Sableye, wanting attention, playfully jabbed her sides.

While that move earned the Pokemon a death glare from his partner, he earned May's favor when she successfully overpowered and pinned the woman.

"…You… You just do as you like! Y-You're half-assed on the scale of a female lead! It's embarrassing! Ch-Childish that is!!" Mrs. Hiromi whined.

"Is that so? Then, I must be a reflection of Mom since she acts just the same, nya." May countered cheerfully.

Despite the faceless mask of wind, what Mrs. Hiromi saw was the grinning face of her child shining brightly. And because of that, the woman's expression softened to their usual standard when she blushed softly and caressed her daughter's hands once more.

There was more Mrs. Hiromi would've loved to do, wanted to say!

However, her moments of deviation brought about the abrupt end of her rift, bringing Torchic, Sableye, May's room and herself back to the realm which they rightfully belonged.

Though the shift caught them all off guard, only Torchic became frantic when realizing one key factor didn't return with them. Even when that Sableye guy did that thing with its eyes, the chick Pokemon didn't care! She raced over to the only one capable of making a difference and chirped desperately.

Mrs. Hiromi acknowledged but ignored them both. Far too shaken to accept what happened but didn't need her partner to reveal the particles of wind that gathered as if spirits to ritual right in front of her, but existed on their own plane…

Everything she said was truth. In that outfit, **her **choices, **her **resolve bear no purpose in the "greater balance". All while those she managed to draw close to her are whisked away into, destroyed by the lies of astral. Yet, as wafts of cold air brushed against her unrestricted left arm, she realized, despite her genuine truth, everything she's done was also a lie…

She was indeed, the most half-assed of all…

It was through that resolve that the woman regained her bitter glow as she stood with the dignity only she could exhibit.

"I apologize. I came here with the intention of sharing my heart with you and again, became too emotional being surrounded that foul zone. I'm too tired to pull another ritual. This is why my sacred body, with all its massive potential, will serve as the gate needed for Sableye to link into and force open a rift. And you May,"

Her unfazed expression renewed with greater vigor, Mrs. Hiromi glared at the gathered sprites of wind before she pushed her left hand in the center of them. Of course, they were unaffected and only adding a minor chill to her hand, but the divine combo wasn't over yet!!

With fiery flicker emanating from his gem-like eyes, Sableye arched forward before entering a state of intangibility and charged into Mrs. Hiromi's being. As she wasn't anything normal herself, Torchic felt unnerved from an odd vibe pulsating from the woman but stood paralyzed from the crushing amount of pressure released when the woman's left hand took the shape of Sableye's.

"You'll serve as the catalyst that links us both to you and that miserable world known as astral!"

Upon that claim, everything but Sabelye's legs emerged from the woman's hand as his unnatural yet added force successfully struck the barrier that separated them all! That course of "rule break" actually caused the area to pull in, as if elastic being pushed to its limit!!

As the process continued, Mrs. Hiromi felt bitter. When it came to this realm and that child, everything she's done was ultimately a lie. Sure, she came with the intent on sharing secrets with her daughter, but the reason for her aggressive approach, how she toyed with her to the very end… Liar.

"…I am a medium, a fallen medium who refused to be chained." Mrs. Hiromi murmured. "Everything about my life before you… I hated it! Even when I left that dreary town to bask in a bright world, my essence, my fate… everything was still shackled to a mediums… AND I DESPISED IT ALL!"

Had that been a marionette messiah of lesser status, their efforts would've fallen in vain right there. However, for THIS willingly broken messiah, a minor flux cannot bend her dance astray.

"Because I know you can hear me, listen!" Mrs. Hiromi, in her own way, pleaded. "I was about your age when I left that world behind me. I had a great deal of fun traveling about, meeting different people and gaining all sorts of memorable experiences. Eventually, I gathered enough resources to escape to Johto and there, I formed with a close bond with a Mareep and raised him all the way to the Ampharos stage. I named him, Sheepy."

Mrs. Hiromi watched silently as the activity of the wind particles increased from her reminiscing. And as she watched, her desires unconsciously grew as well.

"As I was always curious, if not envious of their lifestyle, with Sheepy I decided to spend my days as a roving Pokemon trainer." Mrs. Hiromi continued. "It's not all fun and games as many say it is. It was a lot of work and the expenses were heavy even if there were places that offered trainers aid. I often had to find work doing odd jobs because of that. They were…amusing experiences." She grinned.

Her eyes glittered with nostalgia but as these were norms all trainers, even now, had to endure she moved on. "It was when I was sixteen when I met that man; you're father." Even if her expressions remained unfazed, a strong blush stained Mrs. Hiromi's cheeks. "That man… there was such a primal edge to him that I never felt before…It was also because of him is why I am the way I am now. It took some time, but eventually…we settled down and had a child together. She was only an infant, but I could tell she was going to resemble her father greatly. It was because of that rare strength and beauty I named that sweet child, Matilda."

Though still paralyzed, Torchic shuddered in shock. May wasn't the lady enchantress' only child? If that other girl came first then that means… May was **her **little one!

But…why didn't she ever visit them? Even if May didn't tell **her **much, Torchic would've definitely heard May say something about an extra amazing older sister…That's really weird… But it's weirder because, even if she couldn't explain why she felt it, May was just as shocked as she was…

"I was happy to start a life of my own with my own family that I loved deeply but, even though a bit of my abilities as a medium were lost, my shackles to astral and that life were still far too strong! And what was worse… My little Mattie wasn't even a day past four when she was stolen from me due to the hatred and ignorance of this world…" Mrs. Hiromi growled. "This was always something I conflicted with even in that dreary town: Why must we harm each other so much? Is it truly for _balance _and _survival_? The only reason mediums exist is to mediate conflicts between worlds when one side tries to push its boundaries after all! That was when I finally had an idea, it was a forbidden process meant preserve its user but such laws meant little to a desperate woman…"

As another push was needed to determine a victor, the woman and the Pokemon of darkness gave it their all!

"Don't get me wrong, I didn't want to be reborn, I wanted to bear a piece of the future like any **normal person!** That's why I tried to cheat the methods of the ritual, though it still required a couple of physical sacrifices that I had no choice but to make, I knew my body and **my **power would be more than enough to compensate for work I didn't wish to carry out." She reasoned. "Unlike Pokemon, who can openly wield the elements at a whim, the elements we humans' posses are more varied, and shape the general aspects of our personalities. Yet these elements also reflect our souls shape, this is why, since I held something of an affinity for it, I couldn't part with any my sparking nature but ripped away the worthless wind within me to build your foundation…"

"…But somehow, in the midst of it all, that man found me out." Mrs. Hiromi voiced with a mixture of anguish and gratitude. "We shared our brief differences but in the end, he shared his blood and soul with me for us; together, gather an end result… A pure child of our most shared dominate element; a child of wind given flesh and blood form who bared and would grow to share my physical qualities yet finally strip me of the bulk of my powers. A child that brought me the hope of spring during the distance of winter's bitter calling…and I named that special child of wind, May."

Baring his pure white teeth, Sableye gave a sharp cry as he successfully tore away the barrier separating reality and dreams. And waiting beyond that barrier, was Mrs. Hiromi's important self…

Even if the conflicting currents within revealed the confusion May felt, Mrs. Hiromi ignored it. It was far more refreshing to approach her child and wrap her in a protective hug, allowing their respective elements to mingle enough to bring May back to the flesh and blood form bestowed to her upon "birth".

"Why should you dream…? You are my dream; a dream I ripped from astral and molded in my image. You represent my weakness, my resentment, my vanity, my depression and my future. I entrusted that all to you, May! And I will not let anything set us apart!!" the woman proclaimed as she tightened her one-sided hug.

As the only thing she chose to acknowledge was Torchic's sympathetic chirps, May returned the hug! Even if it would remain one-sided, at least…it wouldn't be so empty anymore…

(A bit later)

Nothing but the munching on crackers and the sipping of tea could be heard in the overall silent atmosphere of May's room.

Mrs. Hiromi again, made herself comfy on her daughter's bed as she continued her vain attempt to get Sableye to try her snacks. May, back in the form she's better known for, sat on the floor. Because her wind form shredded her favored long pink shirt, she now wore a very loose white blouse where the long-sleeves were rather "flappy" in design with the convenient black biker shorts she felt looked nice with almost any top she wore.

"So May, what do you think of Sableye?" Mrs. Hiromi, still in her medium-mode queried. "Since you're closet for the little one I feel it's only fair I ask."

Unlike her mother, May remained within the chain. With a sweet cracker hanging from her lips, she gazed reflectively into the slowly mending rift.

As she didn't want the frowning woman to take it the wrong way, Torchic chirped energetically on her thoughts about the Dark/Ghost hybrid.

She immediately leapt into May's lap when noticing Sableye's sudden appearance by her side.

"So May, what do **you** think of Sableye?" Mrs. Hiromi pressed.

With her attention back to reality, May held a brief look of frustration before saying: "It's scary. It's actually kinda scary looking…" she emphasized. After an eased breath and inner push to move forward, May turned to her mother a bit with a frown. "Lemme guess, this weird gem-thing was the reason why I couldn't play in the basement all this time?"

"You… really just call things as you like. Nevertheless, the answer is yes."

A dark smile appeared on Mrs. Hiromi's face as she then began to chronicle how despite all her efforts she still had a considerable amount of power as a medium left over and "had no choice" but to "pay her respects" to the only centre for the scarce Hoenn mediums called Mt. Prye.

And explained rather smugly that Sableye became bound to her when some little girl dressed like a witch hid in the shadows and placed some outdated hex on her for some reason her one-shot memory couldn't register.

After that tale Mrs. Hiromi took it upon herself to chat about her other adventures. Be it her days as a trainer or as a marionette messiah, the woman was never modest about any of her exploits and always made sure to emphasize on how grueling training (be it Sheepy's or her own) and the punishments that followed were.

"…Mom is so unfair…" May voiced in the middle of one of Mrs. Hiromi's medium life stories. "Shouldn't this be the part I'm supposed to be mad at you and you give me a lot of space?"

"Then hate me if you feel comfort from that. I'll continue loving you regardless of your feelings."

"Dummy, you're closest thing I have to a mom…even if it's her and not me who's your real--"

"Tch! Still half-assed. You are **here **aren't you? You are of my blood and flesh and even if the rules of having you weren't the same, you are still my child, you half-assed fool."

Her tone was stern, but it held a form of tender protectiveness that rattled May to her core. However, it wasn't until this Mrs. Hiromi voiced: "You just have a little extra something makes me love you more than I should" that made the girl's flushed expression finally illuminate with the fall of warm tears as she squeezed Torchic for support the chick Pokemon returned as best she could.

Mrs. Hiromi was oblivious to the scene however and contemplated her daughter's complaints with a bit more depth.

"Seriously, you insult me. There are plenty of differences between us: I mean, when I was your age, I was far healthierthan you in the right places and generally appeared older as well. You're quite short for your age." The woman compared to her daughter's shock. "Oh and that mess you call a hairstyle? Sure I thought it looked nice, when I was seven! I was already enough of a freak so I said bye-bye to that look by the time I was twelve. And you're even trying to grow a ponytail with that… Not to mention our eye color, mine is a lovely ocean blue while yours is pure sapphire. That's a significant difference!" she argued and would have continued if May didn't shakily cut her off.

After squeezing Torchic a bit more, May eventually found at least one thing to look forward to through it all.

"If Mom went through all that trouble just to have me, then I must be pretty special, huh?" she questioned. "Because Mom wanted to carry the flag of a new future and everything that has been happening up to this point… My true purpose must be to serve as a bridge between physical and astral, nya!"

Carefully placing Torchic by the plate of crackers, May stood with a renewed vigor.

"Why didn't I see it like that before, that has to be it! That makes the most total sense! That has to be the true calling only I can do!! Then, I should be fighting for everlasting peace and not be feeling sorry myself! I should probably give myself a name… You too!" May addressed Torchic. "I promised you a better name so you'll get one too!"

Torchic had no problem with being May's _little one_ but if it made her happy… She'd be happy too!

Sableye, though knowingly not involved, hoped the girl gave him a better title than "purple gem-thing". Seriously, he's already a tad _conflicted_ about the nickname the woman has for him during her not-so-serious moments… Just naming him as they like… Humans, go figure.

"It's settled then! I'm gonna move for everlasting peace here and now!"

"Then I'll cry and smack you until you change your mind!" Mrs. Hiromi snapped.

The youthful ring to that outburst only hinted that cool and refined medium had reverted back to the sweet and gentle person May knew her for best. And because of that truth, Mrs. Hiromi was on the verge of tears when faced by her child. But in a fashion only taken by her, opted to drop everything and spoil those she cared for with a tight hug.

Even if that meant collapsing into the arms of the hugged as she was sitting to conserve strength.

"Oops, well, I guess it is possible to love a bit to much…I can hardly move…" Mrs. Hiromi smiled warmly before addressing Sableye. "Sabbie-hun, you're pretty worn out too. Guess I'm still a bit too much for ya? But I'll give you a ten for effort." She chuckled.

A small light flickered within Sableye's gem-like eyes when called by that horrid name, but he couldn't deny his fatigue or the vapors escaping from his usually solid body and thus, made himself comfy by crawling under May's bed.

May ignored the purple gem-thing and carefully placed Mrs. Hiromi on her bed. When trying to cover the woman with her blanket Mrs. Hiromi began to stir…

"May…you are… My strength, my love, my hopes, my happiness and my future… To you… links to others are what puts you at full tilt… But I'm not sharing; I won't share you with anyone!"

_She sounded like a cute little kid when she said that. But, that's what made me so mad at her._

_Sure, I got a lot of answers to my dream problems but now I feel miserable! So at that point, I decided I needed to take a long walk and just… not be near Mom for a bit._

(End Flashback)

--

(Hiromi Household)

"Oh, you're already awake? I would've been out of it for a couple of days." May greets Mrs. Hiromi.

After her time outside, May returns home with a lot less on her mind and six jars of Moo-Moo milk she receives from Laurel. Aside from Mrs. Hiromi, meeting Suzie (who sipped on some juice) and Sally (who clings to her free arm while calling her "Sis") merits a nice surprise for the day. Though meeting Mrs. Birch (whose back Mrs. Hiromi massaged) again is a bit more…

"Yeah, I was wondering why you do that… but you're super cute when you sleep so I enjoy watching sometimes." Mrs. Hiromi replies to May's embarrassment and Mrs. Birch's irritation. "I didn't have time to get out these restricting things but I still had a lovely nap on your bed. It's a shame you couldn't join me though."

A strong blush appears on May's face before tries to shake off the matter and (with the milk pack and Sally still in tow) races to her room.

"Oh! The little one isn't there!" Mrs. Hiromi remembers. The woman furthers Mrs. Birch's agitation when she cuts the treatment short to pat May's shoulders. "May, now I don't want you to freak out but you'll have to trust me on this one." she begins. "You see…I…" she begins to weaken. "Well, good news is your tutor came by! He seemed a bit hesitant but…But I…Since you all you do is keep her trapped inside I thought it'd be good for you both if--"

"Oh, for the love a--Hey, bipolar runt: I have no clue what your view of the world is but Pokemon aren't supposed to be locked up in some clingy little girl's room." Mrs. Birch scoffs to everyone's surprise. Not caring about crowd appeal, the silver-haired woman gestures to Mrs. Hiromi. "That mom of yours might seem sweet and perfect but she's quite the actress. You see, she went and pawned off that tiny thing to "your tutor" and now she wants to be all self-righteous by saying crap like _this will be good for everyone_, but when you weren't around, she's all like, _just take her off my hands_."

"Gil!"

"What? Isn't that what you were gonna say? Geez, I really couldn't care what becomes of that thing. Everyone's just making a fuss about that useless little thing it's been really pissing me off. I can't even enjoy **a scheduled and paid for **spa session without that damned little thing popping up. Oh, and you," Mrs. Birch addresses May. "I know pretty well how possessive little kids can be, after all, unlike your mom, I have **three **kids. No matter what you want to think that thing is in the legal ownership of my **husband**. If you want it, simply become a trainer. Or ask that man is a pushover like that."

"Oh, and I _love _the look you're giving me," she states flatly. "You're a better actress than your mother you know that? Sorta remind me of myself… Anyways, if you're so willing to _do something_, why not go to that planetarium in Petalburg. That's where Brendan, my **son**,or as you know, your tutor that willingly agreed to kidnapping, currently is."

With a final statement of "don't ravage him too much now", May shoves by Mrs. Hiromi and tells the woman to help herself to a jar of Moo-Moo milk before placing the rest on the table and racing off.

"Not bad, I'd say she's five out of seven steps closer to making me forgive her for what she said to me last time." Mrs. Birch sighs, getting Suzie to open a jar for her.

"Geez, Gillian don't you think you took that a bit too far? Sure I want May to realize what she's doing but those two are already--"

"Dragging out a pointless situation defeats the greater cause and separates a tasteless soap opera from a quality one. People need to be more decisive, especially children!"

Mrs. Hiromi puffs her cheeks.

"Besides," she continues a bit more solemnly. "Brendan's a good kid, but he's too quick to berate himself. That's very unbecoming for a man… For a ditz, your talk about that thing being your child's catalyst sounded pretty interesting, so I just wondered if someone like her could serve as his is all."

"You make it sound as if I'm manipulative. I'm just an autumn loving enchantress as we agreed earlier."

"I can use your child for my own gain just as much as you do mine, I don't see the big deal." Mrs. Birch sighs in exasperation. "Besides, I find her a bit amusing and you too. It's just funny… how easy it is for someone to make a drama out something as simple as living…"

Mrs. Hiromi blinked twice at this but with a defeated smile, goes back to attending on her customer.

--

(A bit later: Route 102)

_It's just a promise I want to keep that's all_, May tells herself as she races through Oldale and into a new grass path. Sure, she's grown a bit fond of her, but don't these kind of things happen when you're with something so long?

Just look at her and that unimpressive tutor-- May cuts her moments of reflection short when noticing a large blockade full policemen farther ahead. And ordering that plateau, when she opts to leave the main path and travel quietly through the tall grass on fours, is none other than the Battery of Justice.

"Busy as always, Policewoman, good luck! But I still have to get across, nya." May whispers to herself with a wide grin.

As much as May wants to watch that cool and decisive knight of justice in action for a bit longer she jumps from the heavy thud from some acorn-like Pokemon that falls from a nearby tree. Her cover isn't blown thankfully, but still May clamps down on the rocking thing with her left hand and gestures a 'shush' all the same.

However, a figurative pair of pink cat-like ears and tail appears on her being the moment the policewoman, for reasons that makes her such, briefly looks the girl's way through the corner of her eyes.

From there, those close by only heard the frantic cries of some little creature racing through the tall grass. And, while few could've swore they saw a pink tail frizz up when it crashes into a signpost, they ignore it and just watch whatever is in that grass continue its frantic run until it leaps out from the path and races into Petalburg like a blur.

A bit too large to be a Skitty but… meh, trainers need to stop doing as they like with the Pokemon they catch…

On her end, May's **in **a blur! After running until she thought her heart would burst, the girl holds a strained expression as she catches her breath.

"That was bad, nya! I thought… I… That policewoman had a really scary look on her face. Ow, ow, ow…" she pants. "This place is too big! Which big building is that space place…? Which way should I go?"

Feeling some relief from the wind lingering around her, May tries to study her surroundings only to throw herself and slide backwards to (barely) avoid some large blue flying thing that hones in on her wind therapy.

The air carries a strong scent of raw flesh, May cringes before facing her attacker. If there's anything the laid-back residents of Mahogany hold in regard is the proof to lock themselves and all those who can't defend themselves, human or Pokemon inside someplace safe.

Because at night when the moon shines bright silver is when the Golbats begin their nightlong festival of blood.

The only problem is, this is Hoenn and there's still sun! This seems to mean little to the Golbat itself who flapped its wings rapidly and glares down its prey with starved glee.

"Those things really **are** big…They might be worse than barking ones…" May cringes. "And it can fly too! I don't think I can get away without losing too much blood or getting turned into a zombie… Tch! Darn it! Why didn't the sun finish you off, you worthless Pokemon no one likes!"

An X-shaped vein appears on the left side of the Golbat's head for that comment and swoops down for the kill! When May feels all she can do is brace herself, the bat Pokemon jerks violently in the middle of its descent. Shocking its prey by remaining suspended in place.

The Golbat struggles against it but finds little success. Not willing to give up the possibly only decent meal its about to have in…who knows how long, the bat Pokemon refuses to take anymore chances and, even if the possible chance of lunacy will sour the blood, it will give this human the full brunt of a night warriors requiem…

…Or at least would have…its lovely voice…its requiem for an endless scarlet night…won't come!!

And instead of a long awaited festival of blood, the bat Pokemon, whose mouth is always open, is treated to a bunch of multi-colored little blocks courtesy of a purple and black pig-like creature that stands on twos and snorts loudly from its large pink snout as it joins May's side.

Even if its snorts grow heavier, the creature doesn't let Golbat out its sight nor stop the spread colorful blocks from continuing their lovely formation around its arms, and thus, begins to hop about in a small dance. After one final spin during its hop, the creature outstretches it arms towards Golbat and releases an abundance of those colorful blocks, more than it appears to originally have!

It's an odd way of doing it, but the Golbat is down for the count. At least it'll have more than it can chew on if and when it awakens…

"_Berry Barrage __is a success!_" a voice of a girl speaking the pure Hoenn language confirms excitedly from behind.

May and the creature turn to face a cheerful looking girl around May's height and age. As much as May wants to say the newcomer's short purple hair is her greatest standout point, the large pink ribbon she has tied in, stands out far more. Considering those standards, she dresses weirdly too!

That short-sleeve yellow shirt is already way too bright, why bother having a Poke Ball with ribbons on it and the word "CONTEST" in international tongue for design? And what kind of school has such a short sky blue skirt? Well, it does frame her dark blue eyes nicely, the rolled up white socks were a nice touch too, especially with the white and purple tennis sneakers. The pink Poke Balls are debatable for sneaker design though…

As May begins to shudder at the realization she's been around Amara too much, the girl ignores her existence all together. She instead, gestures to the content creature with a wink and a two finger send-off.

"_You're performance was __A+ __worthy in Cool, Intelligence and Beauty._" She praises before crossing her arms proudly. "_Heh, __as expected, _Grumpig _is the greatest._"

May blankly repeats the word "Grumpig" to which the purple creature proudly turns to her. The purple-haired girl watches this a bit surprised but eventually smiles good-naturedly.

"_Hm hm hm, __you aren't very smart, are you?_" she notes. "_If _Grumpig _didn't come in when he did you'd be in desperate need of a blood fusion at this point. Yup, __Grumpig __and me really saved your sorry butt!_" she smiles. The girl holds her position but looks at May a bit more seriously. "_Just what were you thinking anyway? There's tough _Pokemon _running all over the place and without a __Pokemon __of your own…_" the girl looks away smugly. "_Just don't think _Grumpig _is gonna keep playing __hero __for you, he answers to me!_"

"Poke…mon?" May responds blankly.

When the saying: When in Hoenn, do what a person from Hoenn would, sinks in, May shakily picks herself up to face the Hoenn girl with equal standing.

The purple-haired girl doesn't seem too impressed, but she along with the creature remain silent as May uneasily points to herself with a toothed-grin.

"_My name is…_ May Hiromi." May begins. "Torchic, _yes? A_ Pokemon, _have you seen_ Torchic? _I need to find a big palace star at day. Which building has…home?_"

"Ugh… I can speak the international language; just stop bastardizing my language already! Satisfied now, _outsider_?" the girl says with disdain.

Something that takes May aback.

**To be continued…**

--

(Notes)

…Though more geared towards Mrs. Hiromi's angle, I finally got a **piece** of May's origin out of the way while going deeper into astral than I hoped to imagine. Though "wordy" I came to realize there was no other way around it unless I sacrificed scenes of significance and then, for consistency, somehow retconning them into later chapters.

Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. This is one of those chapters where a fic writer says "hell no, of all things that need to be done, this chapter has been done right the **first time**" and because of that, was ultimately the reason (aside my personal life) that this all took so long. No point in holding back, eh?

Still, what is astral reset? From the way Mrs. Hiromi's "medium mode" spoke it didn't seem like this was the first time this happened. What are those "links" she talked of? This along with May's long past will be unraveled soon enough.

Okay, now for why you're still here…

**1. Marionette Messiah **is the theme of Levi Tolar/Mai Kobayashi from the Super Robot Wars franchise. As awesome a BGM it is, the title suits how Mrs. Hiromi sees mediums as very well.

**2. **When I said Torchic is nothing normal herself, I simply meant she's a Pokemon, not a human (though admittedly she behaves quite human). Pokemon and their ties to astral play out more in the upcoming intermission and carries out for the remainder of the story. Shrugs Gotta start somewhere.

**3. **As Sableye (or Sabbie, as Mrs. Hiromi nicknamed him) is a Dark/Ghost hybrid I believe he should be able to sink through walls or generally be able to enter states of intangibility due to the ghost nature. That or I've been watching WAY too much **Danny Phantom **for my own good.

**4. **I used the Book Antiqua text format to emphasize Hoenn based dialogue. Though for this means squat and I have to simply italicize that instead. At least I'm keeping good on my claims in **Chapter 5**.

**5. **The line with Golbat is just an in-joke about them (and Geodudes) making it to every Pokemon game. I like Golbats myself, but unless that 5ft 3 vampire bat is on my side I would seriously label those guys under must avoid.

**6. **Ever take those "what element are you?" quizzes on the 'net or been compared to some kind of element due someone's perception of you? Well the concept of one's elemental spirit/connection has always been a great interest to me. There's pros and cons of being like a said element, yet of a persons personality they can have more than one/two elemental trait. I hope to make a small chart one day on that but not now…

Also, in the world of Pokemon, I really think this kind of aspects mend a greater meaning to the bonds a human can creates with them. In which I mean, a trainer can be close to all their Pokemon, but holds a deeper affinity for one or two of them than the others. This could all be due to, not just the length of time together or personalities, but also due to the affinity one has to a said element… Yeah I'm getting a bit too theoretical in the spiritual sense here but here introduces a key concept of Hurricane and the astral.

**7. **The final, a bit more iffy note I'd like to address is the parts where Mrs. Hiromi mentioned her creating May through a ritual that was supposed to make its users "reborn" and the results that followed. As much as I wanted to go into greater detail over it, I also had to keep in mind the situation was being told from Mrs. Hiromi's angle. So in her perspective, the process meant squat but the results was all that mattered.

The process of this ritual will be brought up quite often in later chapters, but if you're practically ready to burn me at the stake for it, then just think of that ritual as something of a "New Game+" situation.


	13. Lost Wings II

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

Being released from his Poke Ball, Mudkip jumped about happily. Something that left Brendan uneasy.

"Pr-Professor, are you sure this is okay?" he asked. "I mean, shouldn't we wait for-"

"You and I both know my primary assistant is overseas visiting family. Besides, you've proven to us both time and time again that apprentice is only an insult to your ability." The man Brendan dubbed "Professor" voiced.

As he felt it should be done, the Professor turned to Brendan. He truly had that vibe of scientific authority with that white coat. However his wear of a casual green shirt, brown shorts and sandals along with that beard only mellowed what was regarded as the elite of elite.

That man wasn't just an easygoing science authority with a strong (yet intimidating) wife his loyalty (and fear) remained set to, he was noted as one of the Hoenn's region's best. If not officially noted number one Pokemon authority.

Truly a man among men…

"Brendan, from here on in you are my full-fledged secondary laboratory assistant." He continued. "Running a few field research missions isn't just "okay", it's expected. Just have a bit more faith in your ability."

_Though he doesn't get the respect he deserves in his field, Professor Ivan Birch is definitely someone I respect the most. He's pretty unorthodox, the only known Pokemon researcher who has no problem getting to understand Pokemon in their natural habitat up-close and personal, literally._

_He's also not afraid to admit that building models of any kind are always cool._

Brendan felt proud to be regarded with such faith, but something still bothered him.

"But…Professor, why Mudkip? I-if it's just Route 103... Well, I go there all the time. I doubt-"

"But that's the beauty of life; it's never the same no matter how many times you visit." Prof. Birch reasoned. "Why do certain Pokemon live where they do? And, if it's because of their type, then how is it that certain Pokemon with no affinity to such a habitat hold out so well, sometimes, better than the ones who do? This is where Mudkip comes in."

Prof. Birch ignored the quizzical expression Brendan and Mudkip gave and continued his findings. "There's a rumor going around that even Pokemon hatched and raised by humans will become stronger if in a habitat that naturally calls to them." The man theorized. "A fresh water Pokemon like Mudkip will adapt to Route 103 far more positively than a forest and field Pokemon like Treeko and Torchic. And you Brendan…" he continued. "Likewise, this is a mission that requires you for full accuracy. With your knack for grooming Pokemon and creating diets that fortify their health, if there's anyone who will notice any change in Mudkip's skin, appetite or anything on the surface right off that bat, it's clearly you."

"…Yeah… because Pokemon skin care is such an A level talent in the trainer world…" Brendan mumbled.

Brendan jumped when Prof. Birch surprised him with a pat on the shoulders.

"This is another reason why I want you to run this mission and keep Mudkip as your partner." Prof. Birch began. "Brendan, I know you had some hard times in that Academy, but if you give up now you'd only be giving those who criticize you what they want! You should get back on that Rapidash and ride no matter how long it takes! I mean, a Pokemon researcher's life isn't all glamour and recognition."

He was unsure, but he was believed in. As he turned to his mud fish partner who returned a carefree atmosphere, Brendan muttered a small curse and clenched his fist before he threw an eased sigh.

"It can't be helped, can it?" he said before he toughened up for his hero. "You have a point Professor, sorry for questioning you. I-I won't let you down!"

It felt good to see the boy standing strong again, but the strength revealed threw a chill down Prof. Birch's spine. "Br-Brendan… It would be easier on the nerves if you just called me "Dad" or "Old Man" or whatever kids call their parents these days… Seriously, you have your mother's intensity…"

(End Flashback)

--

The region of Hoenn isn't like the better known ones. An origin that astounds many; its pride and it shame. An origin that gives reason why Hoenn is said to be one with the sea…

This is why areas like Petalburg City exist. Once a fisherman's city in its founding days, Petalburg stands apart from the sisters LittleRoot and Oldale as a place that fully expands its grasp and modernizes to the point visitors, even official establishments like the Pokemon League, set up camp for business and pleasure.

Its roots will not be forgotten however, for the vast purifying sea with all its gifts and mysteries are the reason its founders were able to thrive and grasp the sun.

For you see, despite its evolution, Petalburg will always be noted as the starting line to the sea of dreams…

However not all dreams are easily read. Sitting on a lone bench not too far from the newly constructed planetarium, Brendan heaves a heavy sigh. On Laurel's suggestion that they all dress nicely for the event, the boy takes advantage of the return of usual Hoenn weather and wears a sleeveless black vest over a black tie and a dressy white shirt. He rolls up the long sleeves for reasons of his own.

But just because he let Laurel and Max have their way doesn't mean he's not going through this on his own terms, that's why his favored multi pocket black pants, sneakers and bandana were also apart of his look.

Brendan shifts his attention to his left where the bitter Mudkip rests beside him. Noticing this, the mud fish growls at his partner before jumping off the bench.

He watches silently as the mud fish keeps his back to him and settles for a nap.

_Well, that can't be helped…_

_It's been a little over a month since the disaster that cost Prof. Birch the Hoenn satellites of grass and fire. But then, from out of nowhere, Torchic comes back into our lives and in house of that girl of all people…_

_Even if Treeko didn't seem to be there, Mudkip was still happy to see a friend. I should've been too, but looking at that girl's face I…_

After a strained look Brendan sighs. "Well, I was really caught off guard by the whole thing so I ended up recalling Mudkip and leaving without really thinking about it. I forgot about cleaning up… Hah…I really screwed up…"

"Brendan is such a boring brother; he never plays with us and is always sad by himself." The voice of Sally states.

"Mudkip is grumpy today too…No fun…" Suzie sighs.

"Sorry about that, it's just-"

Cutting his apology short, Brendan quickly leaves his seat to see his little sisters: Suzie, holding a hotdog with everything on it and Sally, holding a vanilla ice cream sandwich, sitting contently on the bench.

Like their brother, the twins act upon Laurel's request in their way as well, with Suzie wearing a frilly pink party dress with matching shoes and a shiny new hairpin. Sally took a more boyish approach by wearing a short sleeve orange shirt with the words "Advanced Generation" written in International characters on the front, "AG" on the back. Throwing in the yellow shorts with the casual sneakers with the words "Gen.III" on them, one can easily tell the two apart.

"You two! Why are you out here by yourselves? Where's Laurel?" Brendan questions.

Hearing "they ditched to give him lunch" is something Brendan **doesn't** want to hear no matter how thoughtful it is! Thus, he chastises them. As getting yelled at isn't what **they** want to hear, the twins join Mudkip in turning their backs to him.

Brendan's rejection doesn't last long, not when neither twin is capable of properly holding their food but criticizes the other for their poor handling, resulting in Mudkip, sick of them both, to moisten the ground and kick a patch of mud at them no longer giving them a reason to argue but a reason for Suzie to cry and Sally to be on the brink of tears.

As the mud fish chooses to go back to the bench, Brendan just sighs good-naturedly while slapping his bandana-covered forehead.

--

**Chapter 7- Lost Wings II Boy's Heart**

--

(A bit later)

"So, is everyone satisfied?" Brendan asks.

Sitting on the bench with Suzie sleeping on his left, Sally quietly sipping her soda on his right and Mudkip sleeping on his lap, Brendan turns to Max in exasperation.

"And how about you? Though I don't know why I'm giving you anything in the first place."

Max contently helps himself to two more licks of his cherry snow cone before adjusting his glasses. "It's business; think of this as a down payment for good information." He reasons.

'I'm being shaken down by an eight-year-old…How lame…' Brendan mentally sighs.

Save for Max, Brendan does feel a moment of peace knowing Mudkip and his sisters are happy and asleep but moreover, feels his heart skip knowing the maid next to Max is also smiling.

The young woman, possibly between the age of eighteen to twenty-one, though holding a refined atmosphere most people in her field posses, stands out (at least to Brendan) due to her silky black hair styled into a French braid, her eye-pleasingly soft skin and her tender brown eyes stand remarkably due to the beauty mark below her left eye.

These were all the boy needs to have a true moment of peace…

"Brendan, beat-up that big girl okay?" Sally requests.

"Wh-What's with that all of the sudden?!" Brendan blurts.

"…Brendan and that Nya-nyan girl are fighting?" Suzie, awake from the outburst, questions groggily.

Though groggy himself, if his partner has a plan to overcome such a tough guardian, Mudkip will play whatever role necessary to play with his friend again.

"No! No one is fighting anyone here!" Brendan snaps. "Stuff like that doesn't solve anything, you know that! Why would bother asking something so petty Sal…"

Brendan calms down when Sally burst into tears. Sally's usually the resilient one of the two, so this situation… Well, whatever, Brendan can't help but feel annoyed when Suzie, now on the verge of tears herself rushes over to comfort her sister.

_It's always like this…_

_Everyone jumps forward without as care in the world and expect me to join without being told a thing. Just expected to play "my role" whatever that is… Yeah, I'm used to it at this point, but…!_

"I know you're a reasonable guy Brendan but asking those two about anything is next to impossible." Max comments to Brendan's surprise.

As lame as it is to say, it really is rare moments like these that make Brendan feel as if there's something watching him from afar when placing this mixed bag of people in his life. Oddly, despite how much they bug him, "friends" is always the first thing he thinks of when seeing them…

"I see, but be careful how you talk, they're still my sisters you know…" Brendan sighs to Max's relief.

The young woman doesn't pay the Wurmple on her shoulder any mind and turns to Brendan with a smile.

"Master Maxwell grew lonely when all his playmates ran off." She chuckles. "He became very concerned when no one returned."

"That's not it at all Lien and you know it!" Max snaps at his maid. "Today was waste of time! I mean, first Brendan is all depressed about the fight he had with that crazy girl and Laurel gets all drama queen in there saying she'll bring that psycho here even if she has to drag her! And to make things worse," he continues. "Watching those trainers was such a joke! Things are gonna be a whole lot different when I become a trainer I'll say that." Max sighs but turns to Brendan matter-of-factly. "Brendan, I know you mean well, but you gotta stop hanging out with her! Don't you have enough to deal with without her coming between everyone?"

After that liner, Lien bops Max's head.

"You can't force anyone to choose like that! Brendan's at a point in his life where he likes to be with his friends but also wants the company of well…" the young woman considers this before getting embarrassed herself. "Y-you'll understand when you get older, young master."

"It-It's not like that! I'm only her tutor! But…" Brendan hides his blush and hastily turns to Max. "S-so what about that important information? You're always a big help when it comes to watching my sisters so anything you know is good."

Brendan gives Max a strained look when he extends his free hand asks for five poke dollars before doing anything.

"I told you, the snow cone was down payment. And while I'd normally just **give **you information, it's centering around someone I really don't care for. That's how the Maxwell family runs its information line. So, five poke please."

He hesitates, but Brendan relinquishes the money with a heavy sigh. Now, with his conditions met, Max adjusts his glasses and begins his report.

--

(Flashback)

_…Y'see, a few days after that girl appeared Suzie and Sally got into a really nasty argument and since Suzie had a point, Sally got really mad and ran through the North Gate. I was worried since that aggressive Pokemon was still around then too but…_

Since Suzie claimed she didn't care what would follow, Max alone called out for Sally in front of Route 101's entrance.

"Hehe, are you still doing that? Pokemon here are too weak to be a threat to anyone, nya."May voiced from behind.

"Aha! Nya-nyan Girl!" Suzie greeted happily.

"Ah? Please don't call me that…" May sweatdropped.

"Doing what you want, typical." Max voiced. Without turning to the older girl, he moved to a new topic. "In any case, since you don't care about the rules around here, do you mind gettin' Sally? She and Suzie got into a really silly fight and-"

"Leave her alone!" Suzie interfered sharply. "You too Boss, mind your business, okay! Sally's always like this when she doesn't get her way! She shows off how far she run and always can get the best hiding spots because she's athe-ath- just because she can!" What sounded like praise only turned to sorrow as Suzie showed a tearful face. "It's not fair… I want to too…SALLY IS SO MEAN!"

Max remained silent as Suzie cried. It was hard to watch, but he had no skill in this field. That truth made him all the more vulnerable to impatience when May stared at him.

"Why are lookin' at me for?! You never heard of sibling rivalry?" he snapped. "Geez, I bet in some sad alternate world you probably have to deal with that."

The eight-year-old expected more of an idiot's logic but instead heard: "What I am in another life doesn't really bother me, but the me here doesn't have any brothers or sisters so I really don't get this…"

Max turned to the older girl shocked; even her disposition held an atmosphere that one would've said felt reflective and reliable.

Now self-conscious, a figurative pair of pink cat-like ears and tail appeared on May and frizzed up when she realized her position.

"Ah sorry! I was just trying to say something like how my mom would. I think it sounds pretty good!" she laughed to Max's exasperation. "But, I really don't get this… I don't really remember much of my life but, I think…it's the hardest to fight with family…So… because it's really hard to do, I think I'll help this time, nya."

Max and Suzie stood silenced by the oddity of a new girl. However, through logic, Max scoffed.

"I almost would've took you seriously there if you didn't say: _you don't remember much_. Stop trying to sound cool when you should've said: _You don't want to remember_." Max deciphered to which May called him ill-mannered. "I still don't trust you. I'm only giving someone like you a chance because someone actually respectable Brendan and Laurel say I should." He shrugged.

"That's okay, I don't think highly of your type either." May grinned. "But I promised that Ecruteak maid to be nice to you no matter how hard it is. And it's the worst of things to ignore a fellow Johto born in need, nya."

"Wha- When did you meet Lien, huh? Sneaking on someone else's property?! Hey! I'm talking to you!"

_Not like I wasn't surprised, but that girl just did what she wanted at that point. We did see Sally much later in the day._

_Since Sally doesn't want to talk about what happened, the best source would be that girl, and I hardly see her around these days…_

Within the half-way marker of Route 101, an isolated Sally sat away from the grass path as she stroked the body of a wild Wurmple. The worm Pokemon, though bewildered at this, felt no danger and stared at the oddity skeptically.

It looked over to the left when it noticed the tiny human did so to watch an older human stare at the grassy areas as if expecting something.

"Nya-nyan Girlie?" Sally voiced innocently which resulted in the reappearance of that figurative pair of pink cat-like ears and tail on May.

"You too? Come on, please don't call me that! It's weird!" May whined.

"But it's funny to see peoples faces! And," Sally continued. "I'll get noticed faster if I say what bugs them."

Lines used in a way that made May blink twice.

(Later)

Even after she listened to Sally's story, May held a blank look.

"It's not hard, nya." Sally scoffed. She quickly apologized when May turned to her. "See, getting you mad always gets attention the fastest! That's the only trick I have against Suzie! She can't do much and she's always getting sick but everyone, even my stupid brother, gives her more attention because of that!"

As she aimed for attention, she kept pulling the annoyed Wurmple back to her every time it tried to leave. As she wanted May's sympathy, Sally shifted her topic: "Suzie's such a crybaby, too! Remember how much she always cried when you were with her? She's always like that, always whining and crying… No fun at all and that's boring, boring right?"

"…Sorry, I still don't get it…" May answered. "I don't have any brothers and sisters and I never had to think about these kinds of things 'til now. But I think that's really hard for you two…" Sally remained quiet as she watched the older girl struggle with herself. "…Because there's more of you, you always have to fight for attention. But, you're upset because your sister is sick and gets noticed more because everyone worries for her. But, she's jealous too…"

Sally pulled in and gripped Wurmple twice more before the older girl's words said something her attention grabbed! Far more interesting than the worm Pokemon that did something silly like getting its tail curled up.

May however, was in a void. Her expression distanced as her soul wrapped itself in clashing morals; a slash of resolve only her mother could conjure within a gale she couldn't control herself wasn't anything new to her at this point…

"…She hates feeling helpless and wants to do what you can but it's impossible for her. So she fights with you because she wants that…" May rambled. "…You two really want to play together to very end, that's why you're forcing that guy to play when he doesn't want to be near you, like how you want to play with her but she can't go as far as you want… Both will attack and you get upset… That's why I think it's hard…"

…It was just, a resolve that wasn't hers and that started bother her…

Now freed for real, Wurmple turned back to the humans. The worm Pokemon curled and uncurled its tail just to emphasize the nearly unnoticeable dual spikes before it continued along its way.

"…If no one wants to play with me…then will you?" Sally asked sadly.

**That** answer needed no outsiders as May weakly turned to the six-year-old and smiled.

Completely overjoyed, Sally attempted a tackle hug only to be surprised when May stood up without warning.

Sally didn't get any of this but that didn't stop her from clinging to the older girl when a **very **angry looking Poochyena leaped out from the grass path. Unlike the rest of its species in the area, the scars on this bite Pokemon proved that it bit off more it can chew quite a few times and its fur that remained bristled showed it's still needed another reminder.

And it proved that when it lunged at Wurmple.

Due to the bite Pokemon's already exhausted state and its own unusually high level for such an area, Wurmple was able to hold its own. Sally watched in horror as the two Pokemon snapped, swiped, physically collided and rolled about.

"This is a fight between Pokemon fighting on nothing but instinct. It's a lot scarier than a refined fight between human raised ones, nya." May voiced.

Sally turned to the older girl who apparently felt a lot better considering how sick she looked before. But, she must be upset about this fight too, she was shivering!

"Of all them…I hate barking ones the most…" May voiced shakily, turning to the face faulted Sally with a toothed grin. "Unless they're put in their place, they always get the most blood-thirsty."

Sally blinked blankly at the weird older girl's easygoing behavior. Things weren't made any easier when she voiced: "It had to be a barking one of all things…This is bad…" Sally didn't get the point behind all the muttering, but she received her answer when she saw it for herself:

Nearing their respective limits, the two combatants stood opposite each other.

Licking its front left paw yet refusing to accept anything from one it deemed lower, the Poochyena bared its fangs at the fatigued Wurmple, placing all its bets on one final desperate charge forward.

Wurmple readied for the attack by curling its tail-

That wouldn't curl! Wurmple was spent! That tiny human not only stopped it from having a meal but that fanged brute really did a number on it… The worm Pokemon dreaded to think what kind of monster that beast was like if it wasn't tired. But instead of having time to wonder about this, it was sent tumbling from the bite Pokemon's Tackle.

Poochyena gave a victorious howl as its defeated foe struggled to move before succumbing to the pain.

Had this been Suzie, she would've already been crying like no tomorrow… No, Suzie wouldn't even be here from the start. That was the difference between them; the soft-skinned Suzie and the tough-skinned-

"Ah! Stop calling me Nya-nyan already! My name is May got that?!" the older girl snapped after another appearance of the figurative pair of pink cat-like ears and tail due to Sally's attention-get tactics.

"That's not important right now!" the six-year-old argued. "You're a lot bigger than me, so please help that Wurmple! My teacher said you should always help someone hurt and Laurel said you should never abandon your friends! But Nya-nyan Girlie is WAAAY cooler than they are so set a good example, okay?"

As if considering the six-year-old's words, May glanced at the savage Poochyena and shuddered. And the Wurm-thing? Almost getting poisoned didn't sound very friendly.

"You jinxed it stupid Nya-nyan! The least you could do is help it!" Sally growled when May said she'd rather not get involved. "I don't get you at all! You can jump from really far places but you're scared of a little Pokemon?! That's not cool at all! How's this any different from mines and Suzie's problem? That's not fair!! Why should it matter whose in trouble or if you like them or not, in the end **all living things have souls so everyone is worth helping!!**"

Pretty large words coming from a little kid. Still, there was something in it that May couldn't shake…

"All living things…have souls?" she repeated blankly.

Sally nodded tearfully. "My stupid brother taught me that. He's pretty useless but what he said has to make sense since even he has his moments."

Sally felt really stupid for having to resort to one of her brother's lame ideals, but she was desperate! And things are worse now that the Poochyena never left the area; instead, it approached its felled foe to "claim its prize" as most villains in her mom's soaps would say.

The six-year-old turned to the older girl to see she wasn't having a hero's turn around, but just stood there and struggled to make sense out of her **idiotic **brother's logic.

Is this how the Chief felt? Had this been any other time, she would've laughed like crazy, but this time… she's just asked for something as simple as helping a Wurmple, not buying her a Ponyta, so why was that weird girl being…

"YOU STUPID, STUPID NYA-NYAN I'M ASKING YOU TO HELP-me…"

As she screamed at the older girl with teary eyes shut tight, the only thing that canceled out Sally's voice was the whimpering made from Poochyena.

Because of that eye-opener the six-year-old could only show shock when realizing the older girl who once stood in front of her now stood over the felled Wurmple and equally shocked Poochyena who struggled to stand.

"All living things have souls so… we all exist. But what your soul says is right doesn't feel right with mine…" May voiced before snapping back to reality.

Noticing the bite Pokemon wasn't too far away made the thirteen-year-old stumble to her rear. Poochyena wasn't interested in the human anyway, that thing was crazy! It just grabbed the nip of its neck in the middle of a lunge and tossed it.

Someone could've gotten seriously hurt messing around like that!!

Not caring how much vulnerability it sensed from that human, Poochyena found its second wind and fled to Oldale.

May couldn't care if that thing ran to the Sevii Islands; she still couldn't get over whatever happened, nonetheless the realization that she actually touched it! Her hurried attempt to remove its scent from her hand with soil ended abruptly when Sally tackle hugged her and oddly enough, called her "Sis".

"I'm sorry I ever doubted you, you're SO awesome!" Sally gushed. "I'm not sure how you did it, but I'm sure it was cool! Even when she made it cry, Sis went ahead and put on the act for that bully because everyone knows Poochyena always run away when they get hit even once! Chief told me that and so did my stupid but brother." She rambled. "But getting bit by one still hurts, my daddy knows that best!"

_Turned to stone_ was what could best describe May's state that moment. Her body completely hardened with both eyes looking like straight lines and her mouth a thin rectangle, she was utterly humiliated to think so highly of something like **that**…

Barking one or not…

She turned back to normal when Sally voiced: "But this Wurmple got really messed up… Even if it is a wild Pokemon, we can't just leave it like this…"

"…Because every living thing has a soul you wanna save it even if it's wild, nya?" May voiced before grinning. "If you wanna make it feel better really fast, take it to my Mom! When I'm sick I get better really fast when she watches me. Oh," she added. "The key to know you're at my house is that it's **purple!**"

Sally nodded blankly, but even if she really gave it thought, she still had nothing to lose. Pokemon Centers are where Pokemon are **supposed **to be healed, but they take a while to get better and Laurel once complained about slow-service and being understaffed, whatever that means, but is sounded bad. Moreover, she needed a heal fast and since that older girl is beyond what would be deemed "normal" she'd just take her word for it.

"Sis, you're not coming with me? It'd be easier if you showed me."

"…That poor excuse for a barking one is pain but it's still a barking one." May reasoned eventually. "Barking ones are just as bad as monster types when it comes to territory. It'll be back and cause more trouble. Besides," she huffed. "Even if I don't wanna do this, and I DON'T, I can't back down even if it is a barking one because I'd be going against a promise! It's not becoming to make a little kid cry, nya."

"Wha?! You stupid Nya-nyan I'm not a baby! What kind of person has their whole house purple anyway?"

"Also! Also…this is my home too, and all I want is live quietly with Mom…"

_She's already weird but she's doing it on purpose now. Sis is making that face my stupid brother gets when he's trying to be cool. Laurel-sis said: "He places his grief on his shoulders and selfishly acts as if no one can understand it or help him."_

_ Because I'm little, no one thinks me or Suzie get it but that's not fair! Sis and my stupid brother are making sad faces! Not sad like crying, but sad like how someone older will get because they don't want to cry._

_But still, there's a difference between my stupid brother and Sis…_

_Kidding! He's stupid and pretty useless, but like Sis whose always seems to be weird, he can be really cool when he's ready! Really!_

(End Flashback)

--

Like her sister and Mudkip, Sally naps peacefully as Brendan considers Max's story.

"I really see little problem with the situation." Lien states. "She's still in her insecure stages; she'll come around when she's ready. Or perhaps," she reconsiders. "I'm being a bit biased out of my own reservations…"

Lien's expression darkens as she strokes the sweatdropping Wurmple. Muttering something about consideration and feeling nice to be noticed even if it's a simple hello.

"Lien aside, Brendan…" Max sighs, completely ignoring what he doesn't (want to) understand. "Everything seems to come back to that girl. She's really starting to be a bother. And even if Lien can be a flake she's got a point! Let's just ignore her back. Laurel's gonna be snippy about it, but whatever!"

"Hah, an old-fashioned small-town shun, I always wanted to get in on one of those…" Brendan smiles weakly before falling downcast. "Well, it's more like I couldn't get into them. I've already been dodging her a lot lately and I feel pretty rotten for it. But I… Really don't think I can deal with someone like her anymore…"

"…Well, I guess that IS pretty harsh since you're the type who lets girls walk all over you and all." Max reconsiders. Not giving it any more thought, the boy shrugs. "Today was such a waste. Guess I'll hit the trainer battle simulator at the arcade to make it all feel a little worthwhile…"

Before he can begin his goodbyes and catch a high score, Max focuses on gripping the cell phone Lien tosses his way.

"Master Maxwell, please live up to your duties as a man and let Lady Windsprite in on the situation. You were the one who asked to borrow Wurmple to keep a silk trace on the girls if you've forgotten." she reminds in a sing-song voice.

Max frowns, but satisfies Lien as he gets to it while walking off.

"You really shouldn't worry them, nothing good ever comes from hiding your heart." Lien voices softly.

"…They shouldn't be. I have a lot to think about but as long as I'm not taking it out on anyone, I'm not paying them any mind." Brendan replies.

"That's a mature but immature way of looking at things." Lien says to his surprise. As she has the higher ground, Lien decides to further surprise her younger friend by handing him a CD she pulls from her apron pocket. "Sorry for not handing it back sooner but I really got into it." She chuckles sheepishly before pulling out a CD written in Johto characters. "See, I don't pirate all my favorite music! The songs are in Johto tongue, but rock is rock right?"

Brendan blinks twice, but catches himself fast enough to happily accept Lien's item loan.

As much as Lien wants to tell the boy about the band, Max's call has her rushing off instead. She does however; stop short in her run to turn back to Brendan reassuringly.

"Maybe listening might change you a bit…" Lien smiles before running off to catch up to her young master.

This leaves a calmer Brendan to shortly realize that despite their time together; he doesn't know that odd girl's name… He's heard it once or twice before…

"Brendan…" Sally mutters half-asleep. "About beating up Big Girl, I lied. What I really want is for you to make her my big sister!"

--

(A bit later: LittleRoot)

With the day's main event becoming nothing more than lost time, Brendan and his sisters' return home. Suzie is fairly easy to please, just give her a piggyback along the way and she'll pretty much be under control. Mudkip on the other hand simply has no interest in walking. So, to not be near _Brendan the idiot_, the mud fish hitches a ride on Sally's head.

Though she isn't into the baby treatment, Sally gives her brother the privilege of holding her hand. But even if he has innate luck going for him, that still doesn't protect him from her wrath.

"Why?! Stupid Brendan, why can't you make her my sister? Give me three good reasons why you can't!" Sally argues for the fifteenth time.

"Well, one: she already has a family, two: I'm underage and three: It's not going to happen, ever!" Brendan counters for the fifteenth time.

Sally and Mudkip give Brendan dirty looks. Before the child can give her _I'm gonna run away and join the circus_ argument, it is Suzie who stops the conflict.

"How pretty, purple…" she notes groggily.

Looks of determination and curiosity were on Mudkip and Sally's faces as they too notice the Hiromi family household.

"Then I'll just ask Sis myself!" Sally claims as she begins her harsh (if not meaningless) struggle of dragging her brother towards the home.

"H-hey! If you know all this then why are you bothering?" Brendan questions.

Sally stops struggling to reply: "Do you really have to ask?" When Brendan justifies his position he receives death glares from both the girl and the mud fish…

"STUPID!!" is one of the less colorful words Sally yells at the top of her lungs. Her actions startle the many puffy-tailed stray zigzag Pokemon, better classified as Zigzagoon, from their happy positions and back to various hiding spots within the Hiromi yard.

One of the smaller Zigzagoon got so startled that it, out of confusion, briefly plays dead before wildly surprising its foes by taking it upon itself to climb towards an open window in the upper levels of the home.

That'll show 'em…

Little do they know that it climbs up to this place a lot, it has a friend that can't leave it after all, the least it can do is pop in every so often to play. And sometimes, the woman that's currently out like a log brings snacks… Like that plate of crackers over there… Score!!

The only thing stopping the tiniest of tiny raccoon Pokemon from rewarding itself with a nice victory meal is the sudden roar of millions of humans. It stops spazzing out and notices the noise is just from those illuminating boxes humans enjoy so much; something in it about two half dressed human men pounding the crap out of each other… Doesn't look very real…

Its playmate Torchic seems really into it though…

The Zigzagoon then remembers that her human (not the snack giving woman right there, a smaller one it hasn't met) tends put that thing on to keep Torchic busy. She's no fun to play with until those silly programs end… Oh well, onto those snack, Torchic won't mind if it helps itself to a few crackers…

Sableye doesn't either, but that doesn't stop the darkness Pokemon from crawling out from under May's bed to give another new face a warm "hello". Zigzagoon's cries of horror gain Torchic's attention, or is it the toppling her over and cower from behind thing…

None of that matters to the chick Pokemon who simply chirps uneasily at her new-to-her-and-May-but-has-been-here-longer housemate.

"Hmm? The little one has a friend over even when I'm sleeping? How naughty." Mrs. Hiromi jokes groggily. "Sabbie-hun, did you have a nice nap as well?"

Though not making any gestures, a few red X-shaped veins appear on Sableye's fully solid body. Mrs. Hiromi is oblivious to her partner's feelings and smiles brightly. Sally's raging storm of words however…

"Oh my, that's…quite a mouth for someone so small. And you're talking like that to your senior no less? Shall I wash your mouth out with soap?" Mrs. Hiromi greets. "It's good to see you again, my May's tutor."

He feels tense, but determination from afar is far from Brendan's atmosphere. Mudkip on the other hand…

"Ah! Sis' current family. Hey, can we adopt Sis for ourselves?" Sally asks directly.

"No way." Mrs. Hiromi answers just as directly. "But how you like to be adopted by **me** instead? I'm pretty sure I have more ground than you in the legal department anyway." She offers after seeing Sally's disappointment.

Brendan watches Sally in as exasperation when she actually considers the offer. He won't admit it, but his sister being herself helps put him at ease. And not a moment too soon, Suzie gripping onto him tightly while sniffling into his back is only a sign of an imminent breakdown.

"No, you can't! Sally isn't yours! Sally won't leave us, she loves us more!!" Suzie yells, surprising both her siblings.

Oblivious to the family drama, Mrs. Hiromi only blinks at the realization of there being two Sallys…

--

(A bit later)

"Ahaha, they're twins you say? I feel utterly embarrassed now!" Mrs. Hiromi laughs sheepishly.

Though everyone is feeling pretty is lighthearted, Sally takes it upon herself to step behind Suzie and push her forward.

"See, we're different. This is Suzie, she's a little taller 'cuz she's older." Sally explains.

"N-not by much!" Suzie gasps before hiding her embarrassment. "I don't feel like the older one…"

"Does it matter? You're BOTH adorable!" Mrs. Hiromi gushes. The woman bends down to better examine them. "You're cute, very cute! And you know what they say about cute girls when they get older?"

It's undetermined if either twin knows where the woman is getting at, but both blush all the same.

Chance! With the woman focusing on the girls, Mudkip launches his infiltration--only to be recalled back to his Poke Ball by an expressionless Brendan. The mud fish struggles within its prison but the boy seems to have a better grip today.

"My, you seem to have better aim today." Mrs. Hiromi notes. "But thank you for that, I don't think I'd be as willing to clean up a mess like that again."

The fact she chooses to smile at him only makes Brendan feel worse.

"Hey I'm kidding, I'm not mad about that at all, seriously." The woman reassures when Brendan attempts an apology. "But as a mother, I'm not the most pleased about how you're picking on my May." She voices to his surprise. "I know you're a busy tutor but she's really down in the dumps lately and a little push from someone she trusts never hurts…" she huffs giving Brendan some relief before she voices: "Also, you're staring too much. It's really weird…"

Brendan blinks blankly at this before the realization of what the woman has on again grabs his attention.

Mrs. Hiromi sweatdrops at this. "Riiight… Almost forgot you're into to these kinda things…" she states as she watches the boy peculiarly. "But you're obsession for these restricting things really are unhealthy. I feel like you're trying to see right through me!"

Brendan ignores the woman's remark and his sisters disapproving looks to continue studying every aspect of the outfit. It really is appealing, that's why the boy mumbles: "It's absolutely beautiful, calling anything so well crafted _restricting _is just so…narrow-minded. They should be hung for it…" loud enough for Mrs. Hiromi to give him a piercing glare only obtainable through her medium-mode.

'For some reason I think I saw my life flash before my eyes…' Brendan mentally shudders after an unsettling feeling that warns him to shut-up and turn away.

"Umm May's tutor… Where are you looking at? I made this myself so they aren't THAT restricting." Mrs. Hiromi invites. She quickly gives him a cheerful smile when he hesitantly turns her way. "Actually, I made these things to show-off to May why they're so ridiculous looking. She shares your weird tastes though…"

"…That doesn't really-"

"Wha! Did you really make that all by yourself?" Sally intercepts.

"Mm. It took a long time for me to make with the limited amount of supplies I had on me. I think May took my disappearance to make them and some snacks the wrong way though…" Mrs. Hiromi responds before brightening at the realization that her daughter's worrying points are also her cute points.

"Brendan--" Suzie begins before gathering the courage to gesture at her dress. "Brendan likes to make to clothes too! He made me this."

"H-hey Suzie that's too much!" Brendan snaps.

Sally nods. "Yup, It took him a really long time, but Brendan made me this shirt before making Suzie's dress. And you see that thing on his head and those silly pants? He made those too."

"Y-you too?! Si-Silly!?"

"When we rip our clothes or dollies we like to ask him more than Mommy!" Suzie giggles.

"Sh-she's joking, seriously!"

"Yeah, she makes it worse." Sally chuckles. "But it takes him forever to make his stuff. So he has ways to go until he's at your level, right?"

"Now that's just baseless! You both know getting strong silk takes a Wurmples touch and Laurel's can only make those so fast… Half-decent sewing materials aren't easy to come by around these parts either…" Brendan argues before realizing what he says.

As Brendan places his hands over his mouth Suzie and Sally share a fit of giggles. Can today get any _better_, he wonders before Mrs. Hiromi softly grasps his hands and pulls them away from their current location.

Brendan watches the woman silently as she curiously inspects his hands. She has a very delicate feel, he notes. In fact being so close to woman is…

"You're quite a delicate person, aren't you?" Mrs. Hiromi comments warmly. "Perhaps too much for this kind of world. See, you're soft hands don't like it when you tense yourself up like that."

"I-I don't know about that b-but…"

"Brendan's blushing!" Suzie giggles. "He's turning as red as a tomato!" Sally laughs.

Brendan watches the twins in exasperation but snaps back to attention when Mrs. Hiromi addresses him.

"If materials are all you need to make these lovely items then I have more than enough to share." Mrs. Hiromi smiles, pulling the boy's hands closer to her. "But is it possible for you to make something for my May as well? You know, something durable but streamline and frames her countless appeal points enough to make her want to wear it like it was her own skin? I know it's hard, but I'm sure you can capture a few points and be able to frame it from there!"

"…We-well…If I get her measurements and opinions I guess I could-"

"Not guess, MUST! This will be a project to revolutionize the world!" Mrs. Hiromi proclaims with a fire in her eyes.

'Eh… Revolutionize **whose** world…?' Brendan, Suzie and Sally all wonder at the same time.

"Besides," Mrs. Hiromi continues with a new found vigor. "I'm still interested in negotiating a two-for-one deal with these sweeties you have here."

Though totally from left field, Brendan readies a reply only to stop before even beginning when the strong, yet slender arm of Mrs. Birch wraps around his neck.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but this one along with those two belong to me." Mrs. Birch replies.

"Eh? You guys are Gillian's kids? No wonder why you're all so interesting. Now I feel even more embarrassed." Mrs. Hiromi smiles with a light blush.

"Hey, what's with you? This is the part where the rival is supposed to be on edge as tensions boil." Mrs. Birch sighs. The woman slaps her forehead with her free hand when Mrs. Hiromi chooses to maintain her sunny disposition. "God, you really are something else… Everything has just been turned upside down since you came here; even those bothersome little creatures started moving their territory closer and closer to town. How do I know you aren't some occult chick who's placed everyone under spell, huh?"

Hearing that, Mrs. Hiromi's expression weakens.

"Occult chick, eh? Well that beats the heck out of enchantress… still it's been quite some time since I heard that…It feels cold…" Mrs. Hiromi briefly flashes a cold glance, not caring who catches it before closing her eyes and wriggles about. "That's so mean of you to say Gil! How cruel, that was really uncalled for!"

"QUIT PLAYING AROUND YOU!!" Mrs. Birch shouts before startling her children by coughing violently. She ignores their concern and continues with Mrs. Hiromi. "Instead of trying to looking worried for me why not throw your weight around instead? I didn't walk all this way to be chummy with you."

Mrs. Hiromi blinks blankly at the comment until paling at the memory of what really has to be done today… Something that only furthers Mrs. Birch's frustration.

"Ii-it's not that I forgot about today Gil, I've…just got a lot on my mind…I never had any intention on backing out." Mrs. Hiromi reasons sheepishly. "I'm pretty sure you must want me to change out of this ridiculous looking outfit first so please--"

"Yes, I will enter, thank you." Mrs. Birch replies when walking past Mrs. Hiromi and into the Hiromi household. "Hn? The outfit? I didn't notice it. I think it suits you though. Very weird." She adds for reasons of her own.

"That's so cruel Gil! It's not like I dress like this on purpose, geez!" Mrs. Hiromi whines. Though initially going to follow and complain more to the older woman, she turns to the trio. "Well, if you like, you're all more than welcome to come in. Just no more comments about this restricting thing. And no stares okay?"

Suzie and Sally happily accept the woman's offer while Brendan declines. Feeling it be best to make sure that he and Mudkip stay as far away from that house as possible (and because he wants to listen to Lien's CD immediately), going home is the best option.

Normally, Mrs. Hiromi would try to convince the leaving party to stay for while but this time she understands where the boy is coming from. This why the woman asks for his patience as she hurries inside to retrieve Torchic who routinely remains upstairs, leaving her Zigzagoon playmate with the amusing (but not to the Zigzagoon) Sabbie the Sableye.

Only Mudkip, who successfully escapes his spherical prison, shows elation at Torchic's appearance.

"My, my so _you're _the reason what this little guy practically ravaged my living room. How cute!" Mrs. Hiromi teases Torchic before handing her to the hesitant Brendan. "I want you to have her…But just for this afternoon! Go to that planetarium and have fun. It'll be good for all of you."

Brendan is taken aback by the request, but nevertheless the woman's brazen actions help him over come hesitation and give a sad smile.

"…That sounds nice but…It can't be helped, Torchic is…"

"Sick of being cooped up in the house all day! She should stretch her legs; she's a child after all. A Pokemon! I love my daughter but that doesn't mean I'll agree with all her methods to life."

"W-well, that must be hard but," Brendan uneasily shifts his eyes away from the woman. "This is something between you and you're daughter. I'd rather not get caught in the middle, sorry."

Unable to take anymore of this kid's…**bull**, Mudkip races past Mrs. Hiromi only to gain the momentum it needs to race back and surprise her, Torchic and the Birch females by successfully colliding into Brendan's stomach at such a force it's enough to knock the wind out of him and send him sliding back.

Mudkip feels a twinge of guilt at just **how far back** the boy tumbles but enough! That's why the mud fish marches over and chews his _partner_ out the only way he can.

"_Ngh! _Wh-what the hell is your problem…?" is all the mud fish gets when the boy eventually sits up to hold his stomach and cringe more. Mudkip actually wants to hit him again, harder this time too, but instead continues to scold.

It isn't until Torchic, guilty for the situation, wriggles free from Mrs. Hiromi's grip to playfully tug Mudkip's fin-like tail is when the bold mud fish cools down. With that done, the chick Pokemon of peace quickly races behind Brendan and gives him a friendly nudge.

His stomach still hurts but it really does feel nice to have Torchic lighten the mood like old times…

"No, this isn't your fault, Mudkip and I just have a lot of partnership issues we need to work out." Brendan replies calmly when Mrs. Hiromi checks if he's alright. "I'm okay, these sort of things are common experiences for trainers. I'm not that weak, so don't worry Suzie, Sally, Mom…" he assures his family.

While the twins show their respective concern, Mrs. Birch mutters something bitterly about being last.

"Well, I guess I can understand your feelings but… I really don't want any kind of confrontation with your daughter over it. I'm not really good that kind of stuff." Brendan admits. "More like, I'm pretty useless in stuff like that…"

"Hmm… May is pretty territorial when it comes to things she's fond of…" Mrs. Hiromi agrees before throwing all concern to wind with a smile. "But if that's the case, then she'll just have to join you when she gets back. The real question is: Are you going to keep hesitating or will you finalize that shaky link you created on your own."

When Brendan tries to contemplate those words he winces from more stomach pains. Mrs. Hiromi offers him a hand at this point. "Look, all I'm saying is that you kids put way too much on your shoulders these days. I mean, it's not like your decision will affect millions." She sighs. "Just live your life and enjoy your youth. Make as many friends as you can and live everyday riding the storm that links all. I want this for May as much as I want it for anyone she considers a close friend." Mrs. Hiromi gives Brendan a sincere smile. "So, can we share the same cause, just this once?"

_Walking directly into danger, rushing in head on… That's the kind of life I wanted to avoid the most. Even if I'm a trainer, someone like me won't benefit from that kind of action. I've plotted out my movements pretty carefully and even if I get a few problems the results are still pretty good._

_But, it really does feel unsatisfying. Is this really okay? At some points, I thought she hated me but…She doesn't even know me like Laurel and the others that pretty presumptuous-- Grr… I know this but…!_

Still hesitant, still second-guessing, yet in the end, Brendan rejects the hand reaching out to him replying: "It's okay…I can…stand on my own…" while struggling to pick himself up. Earning him the grin and smiles of his mother and sisters.

It takes him some time, but eventually the white-haired boy stands and, after some more cringing, eventually turns to the direction of the main gate asking Torchic and Mudkip to accompany him to the planetarium. Torchic hesitates and turns to Mrs. Hiromi who playfully gives her a shooing gesture.

May is going to join them later anyway so this will be okay right? Torchic figures as she hurries after Brendan. Whereas Mudkip hesitates briefly before remembering his partner is the type to never let things get to him even when he should and tags along with a bit of relief.

Mrs. Hiromi watches the trio walk off until no longer in sight and gives a content sigh. She turns to Mrs. Birch quizzically when the woman claps mockingly.

"Bravo, good show, but you laid it on a bit too thick. You all but seduced him and that idiot son of mine still put on the act for a nice set curves. He's at that age after all…" Mrs. Birch scoffs, ignoring Sally's questions about what seduce means.

"Ah? But I only kept going because I thought Gil was okay with this too." Mrs. Hiromi pouts.

"I wanted to see what kind of decision he makes as man. I'm not interested in all the sub-drama that followed."

"You make me sound as if I'm some kind temptress."

"I won't give you that kind of credit. You're just an oddly dressed brat that has ways to go as a semi-decent parent."

Mrs. Hiromi considers this before giving a dot-eyed expression. "Does that make you my big sis?"

"ABSOLUTELY NO--" Mrs. Birch coughs blood before she could finish.

As Suzie and Sally are too small to catch their mother the moment she falls into a daze, they count their luck that Mrs. Hiromi covers that. And at lightening speed, one might add.

"There, there it's going to be alright. Your ultra sexy little sister will relive your soul's woes and lift it anew." Mrs. Hiromi chuckles.

"…Bullshit! I grew up a spoiled only child; don't distort my view of the world."

"Oh, in that case," Mrs. Hiromi grins. "Consider me an autumn loving enchantress who wishes to atone for her sins through her lovely child of wind." The woman closes her eyes for a more genuine smile. "But I'll do my part as well!"

As much as Mrs. Birch wants a say, she finds herself silent instead. Hah… she must really be out of it, she figures.

--

(A bit later: Petalburg Planetarium)

The powerful cry of a mighty Pokemon echoes within stars and space-themed setting of Petalburg Planetarium's newest exhibit making the crowd outside the viewing glass go wild with anticipation.

Brendan has no interest in any of that. Atop the peak of the planetarium, Stargazers Corner, Brendan watches Petalburg City in deep thought. He can't stop thinking about Mrs. Hiromi's outfit, it really suits her! And something like that is restricting? A strong blush overtakes Brendan when envisioning Mrs. Hiromi wearing the outfit while standing within an elegant breeze. His face reddens when imagining how Lien would appear with it, getting redder as the young woman adjusts it to her settings.

But snaps back to reality falling backwards when thinking of May.

Wincing a bit from his earlier punishment, Brendan hastily sits up when Torchic and Mudkip stand over him quizzically.

_I-I'm too tense! I need to calm down! It's not like my chances of getting through this alive is __**that **__low! I was the one avoiding her after all! That's right; I can't really keep up with this even if I wanted to… Especially when she…_

Brendan sits quietly until rubbing his chin in deep thought.

_…Something streamline, huh? Lien can look good in anything but I can't say the same about that girl. I…never really bothered looking at her like that so her standout points are…It feels a bit tricky when it comes to her._

Though initially aiming for a pad and pen, Brendan pulls out the CD Lien loans him from his top right pocket instead and heaves a heavy sigh.

"What I really wanted to do was listen to Lien's CD and try to think things through a bit…" sighing once more, Brendan turns to the chick and mud fish Pokemon with a small smile. "Well, at least you guys are happy, right? I'll work things out so you two can play together everyday."

Torchic chirps gratefully, Mudkip looks away.

"Well, it can't be helped… that guy was a lost cause from the get go…" Brendan sighs.

The sudden roar of a thunderous alarm slashes through the current atmosphere.

"**Attention people of Petalburg City: We will now be holding our _Trainers Aptitude Event_**." A generic female voice announces on a loud speaker. "**We will be releasing plenty of nocturne dance exhibit Zubats for trainers unable to attend today's event within our facilities to get a chance in the fun by catching these illustrious Pokemon and learning a bit about our universe as they do**-"

"Wh-what?! C-can they even do something like that?" Brendan questions. "Petalburg is full of civilians and most of the trainers around here are just starting out! Tch! Wh-what the hell they are they thinking?"

"**We would like to thank the cooperation from the Petalburg Gym and our local law enforcement for this miraculous event**." The voice on the intercom continues. "**To all civilians: Please find shelter immediately and have faith in our cities talented trainers. I repeat: All citizens do not engage any wild planetarium Pokemon. They are untrained and considered dangerous in hands of the unskilled. Please leave them to local trainers**." The voice warns. "**All those currently involved in our **_**Duel with the Pokemon from Space**_** event or are visiting our other exhibits please disregard this message, thank you**."

"…Even if the Petalburg Gym Leader okayed this, this is just so… completely irresponsible! Did they even _try _thinking about the cons of all this? And they're so quick to disregard all businesses but their own, how typical…" Brendan growls.

With the sounds of another alarm, the Zubats are out and run amok through town. This annoys Brendan but he turns to the chick and mud fish Pokemon with a sigh.

"We'll just wait up here until everything blows over." He says. When Torchic chirps uneasily Brendan pats her head. "That girl has Pokemon envy but I doubt she'll do anything with Zubats running around." He assures. "Besides, Mudkip's gotten pretty strong compared to when Treeko was with us so don't worry about a thing."

Torchic still has doubts but chirps happily all the same.

About to take Brendan's advice and play a bit more, the chick Pokemon along with Brendan and Mudkip are taken aback by the sudden tremor and the loud sirens that follow.

"**A-Attention people of Petalburg City: An error has occurred within our release process that encourages novice trainers to take shelter immediately**." The generic female voice broadcasts with a tone discomfort. "**I repeat: All novice trainers are to stand down and join civilians for cover. DO NOT engage the wild Pokemon! Will all staffed and volunteer tamers please assemble in the conference room immediately! Thank you**."

"Something went wrong? Came sooner than I thought." Brendan shrugs. "In any case…Hmm… Looks like we're really stuck up here…" he sighs.

Brendan attempts to pet a shuddering Torchic only to bite back a curse when heavier rumbling overtakes the area followed by more sirens.

"**Attention! This is not a drill: Will all those in mesosphere, thermosphere** **and exosphere** **pavilion levels please exit calmly and seek safer ground. I repeat: All those within the mesosphere, thermosphere** **and exosphere** **pavilions please descend in an orderly fashion, do not, I repeat, DO NOT engage any Pokemon encountered under any circumstance!**" The voice warns. Brendan pales at this. "**All those in the lower levels please remain calm, our staff are trained individuals, please take their advice and calmly follow emergency procedures. We are now taking emergency lockdown methods. W-we apologize for any and all inconveniences caused**."

"…Th-They're kidding! They screw up and we have to compensate for it? D-damn it, now what…?" Brendan growls. "Exiting sounds pretty messy at this point and I might not be able to watch Torchic amongst all the craziness. The situation sounds pretty bad but my chances might be better here…" Struggling to find the answer, Brendan bites back a curse. "Wh-what should I do… Argh! Need to think fast…!"

Brendan stops mentally pummeling himself when hearing Torchic's shaky chirps. When facing the chick Pokemon he notices her shudders intensify. Even Mudkip acts strangely when giving an intense face. Not at him but…

Mudkip can easily understand if Torchic is feeling this too… His skin is crawling. Something down there… it's not normal…but its scary strong…

As much as Brendan wants to question the two, he instead struggles to keep his balance after a very powerful tremor that leads to the ground having a hole blown through it by an explosion of sparkling light.

With that dying down, many Zubat fly out frantically from their planetarium prison and scatter about. Brendan is quick to grab and shield Torchic from the tiny bat Pokemon while Mudkip growls and threatens the intruders.

Save for the occasional, if not, unintentional wing slap, Brendan's party is unhurt. That is, until one last Zubat frantically races out of the hole only to be swallowed whole by a vicious looking black snake Pokemon with sharp red fangs that jumps out after it.

**A sudden danger appears! Indecisiveness got him this far, what will Brendan do now?!**

**End Chapter 7**

--

(Notes)

**1. **This goes without saying but the flashback scene starts in Max's POV but continues just to show you guys the rest of the situation. I later added Sally's take on the situation for a feeling of balance for the next scene.

**2. **I've always been fond of the Pokemon Pikachu series manga when it came to the depictions of the Pokemon world. Especially it's implementing of TMs and the Pokemon Center. As much as like Nurse Joy, I liked the Pikachu manga showing a large staff of drool worthy nurses tending to the many number of trainers who visit them. I prefer to set the Hurricane universe similar to that. The Nurse Joys do exist but they're sorta like head nurses: far too busy running the more serious recoveries/managing staff (depends on the location of the center) and the like to be waiting for a trainer's approach like they do in the games and anime. (Assuming those pink-haired nurse sprites ARE Joys)

I do remember Nurse Joy appearing in one chapter of that same manga but I never picked that issue up. Heard her role was no different from her anime counterparts I hear. Something of a cameo.

And because I feel there should be some fun, here's a preview to the next chapter: She disregards her existence yet desperately races to her rescue. What is the story between the feral child of wind and the Pokemon with the human heart? Within a crisis strong resolves are made on both ends while the reluctant boy moving by the motions of life courageously spreads his wings. Next time in Distanced Hurricane **Chapter 8a: Lost Wings III -Ruby and Sapphire-**.

We haven't lived until we chase a dream.

**04/15/08 Update****: **Well, like I assumed not much work was really needed for **Chapter 5-Present**. Good thing too, I don't think I would've been pleased if Chapter 6 required structural changes…

With Hurricane V2 update now complete. All that needs to be done is to wrap up the first arc. **Chapter 8a and b **will do that.


	14. Lost Wings IIIa

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

--

Upon the sound of the alarm, the Petalburg Planetarium's Trainers Aptitude Event begins!

A seemingly countless number of Zubats are now free from their confines to run amok throughout the now empty streets of Petalburg City leaving only the bravest of brave trainers to strut their stuff.

However, from the planetarium rooftop Brendan watches with disapproval.

"We'll just wait up here until everything blows over." He sighs to Torchic and Mudkip. When Torchic chirps uneasily Brendan pats her head. "That girl has Pokemon envy but I doubt she'll do anything with Zubats running around." He assures. "Besides, Mudkip's gotten pretty strong compared to when Treeko was with us so don't worry about a thing."

Torchic still has doubts but chirps happily all the same.

About to take Brendan's advice and play a bit more, the chick Pokemon along with her friends are taken aback by the sudden tremor and the loud sirens that follow.

"**A-Attention people of Petalburg City: An error has occurred within our release process that encourages novice trainers to take shelter immediately**." The generic female voice broadcasts with a tone discomfort. "**I repeat: All novice trainers are to stand down and join civilians for cover. DO NOT engage wild Pokemon! Will all staffed and volunteer tamers please assemble in the conference room immediately! Thank you**."

"Something went wrong? Came sooner than I thought." Brendan shrugs. "In any case…Hmm… Looks like we're really stuck up here…" he sighs.

Brendan attempts to pet a shuddering Torchic only to bite back a curse when heavier rumbling overtakes the area followed by more sirens.

"**Attention! This is not a drill: Will all those in mesosphere, thermosphere** **and exosphere** **pavilion levels please exit calmly and seek safer ground. I repeat: All those within the mesosphere, thermosphere** **and exosphere** **pavilions please descend in an orderly fashion, do not, I repeat, DO NOT engage any Pokemon encountered under any circumstance!**" the voice warns. Brendan pales at this. "**All those in the lower levels please remain calm, our staff our trained individuals, please take their advice and calmly follow emergency procedures. We are now taking emergency lockdown procedures. W-we apologize for any and all inconveniences caused**."

"…Th-They're kidding! They screw up and we have to compensate for it? D-damn it, now what…?" Brendan growls. "Exiting sounds pretty messy at this point and I might not be able to watch Torchic amongst all the craziness. The situation sounds pretty bad but my chances might be better here…" Struggling to find the answer, Brendan bites back a curse. "Wh-what should I do… Argh! Need to think fast…!"

Brendan stops mentally pummeling himself when hearing Torchic's shaky chirps. When facing the chick Pokemon he notices her shudders intensify. Even Mudkip acts strangely when giving an intense face. Not at him but…

Mudkip can easily understand if Torchic is feeling this too… His skin is crawling. Something down there… it's not normal…but its scary strong…

As much as Brendan wants to question the two he instead struggles to keep his balance after a very powerful tremor that leads to the ground having a hole blown through it by an explosion of sparkling light.

With that dying down, many Zubat fly out frantically from their planetarium prison and scatter about. Brendan is quick to grab and shield Torchic from the tiny bat Pokemon while Mudkip growls and threatens the intruders.

Save for the occasional, if not accidental wing slap, Brendan's party is unhurt. That is, until one last Zubat frantically races out of the hole only to be swallowed whole by a vicious looking black snake Pokemon with sharp red fangs that jumps out after it.

As much as Brendan wants to know what this creature has to do with space, the knowing danger the fang snake Pokemon Seviper brings when looming over his party with a hungry expression nulls any questions of the inquisitive.

**Cornered! The time strikes to fight or flight! Brendan's decision is…**

Be it the situation before them or uneasiness from earlier, Torchic's shuddering continues while Mudkip glares down this newest intruder with utmost impatience. Brendan however, draws a blank… Sure, his protective hold around Torchic unconsciously tightens due to the situation and his sights lock onto the fang snake just as intensely as his mud fish partner, but "combat ready" isn't what runs through boy's mind when he's finally able to catch himself.

"For an exhibit Pokemon, you're pretty unkempt."

Far from a battle cry, but Mudkip can't stand the Seviper's face anymore and springs at it the moment Brendan utters those lines. Seviper has little interest in toying with its meal but finds quick enjoyment in swaying the half of its body visible out of harms reach leaving Mudkip to merely curse his luck when safely landing opposite his friends.

Seviper ignores the two-for-one bargain and gestures towards Mudkip coolly. The impatient little fool is already readying another attack and, while in days in the wild, Seviper would have outclassed the weaker with its own might, something the humans call "strategy" when boasting about how the would fare in combat against it sounds quite delicious…

Yes, meals seem taste better when Seviper inputs a "strategy" to get them and this will be no different: The fool **will **leap at it and Seviper **will **gobble it up in one bite! It will use lesser methods for the defenseless.

"What the hell are you doing, Mudkip? Get back!" Brendan orders leaving the mud fish to tighten his expression before skipping back twice.

This annoys Seviper but it is one who uses "strategy". It will beat that human at the game its kind makes and devour all three of them! Just as the chaos around it served as the catalyst to silently slither out of it's the roof (that it spent months slowly breaking away with its tail and various excretions, though this disaster sped things up) of its fake home and up a steel beam to purse its few Zubat treats in the shadows, it will return to lower ground to feast upon its greatest capture of the day…

…It just needs its forked-tongue to briefly taste the air before changing backgrounds and a fool who can only charge forward. It will celebrate its strategy under false stars and then, with a strategy no human can hope to accomplish, will take _that _down as well.

"…Did it run away? Pretty unlike a wild Seviper." Brendan voices eventually. After watching the hole for a bit longer, the boy heaves an annoyed sigh. "Just great and whose bright idea was it to have a Seviper in a place like this anyway? That guy must still be hanging around the building framework waiting for us to come too close. Well, that's all it can do." Brendan reasons. "If it had anything capable of wiping us out it would've used it already. It's still technically a wild Pokemon after all… The situation is still pretty bad though…"

Brendan grips the still shuddering Torchic as his attention shifts to the door. New options become available to the boy but the possible consequences that can occur force every resolve to crumble.

A bit of time passes but eventually Brendan turns to the far-off Mudkip and says--well what he's going to say has no meaning if Mudkip makes his own decision and jumps in the hole. With his plan now a waste, Brendan curses his partner and with Torchic secure in the hold of his right arm, races to the hole and attempts to recall the bold mud fish into his Poke Ball.

His attempts only leave a strain on his eyes. Despite his lazy stature, Mudkip proves to be quite the nimble creature when driven and proves this as he jumps and slides from steel beam to steel beam along the planetariums battered structure with little concern.

"Mudkip… Tch! So much for waiting it out up here by the soda machines until this all blows over." Brendan mutters.

When trying to get a better look at what lies within the hole Brendan hesitates and finds himself rubbing his eyes.

"Damn, I guess outcomes like these can't be helped when you're with others, huh?" Brendan, still rubbing his strained eyes, questions Torchic when hearing her nervous chirps. "No offense to you, but I think that girl would be crazy enough to jump in after him, I'm not interested in dying young though… That's why-"

In a (to him) rare turn of events, Brendan ignores the process rationalization to the door. As his earlier debate justify, the doors within the stairwell have no security locks and unlike it, the path appears (for now), trouble free. Brendan only hopes it remains this way and with the uneasy Torchic tightly in tow, carefully races down the stairwell after his Pokemon partner.

--

"Gap?" Mrs. Birch questions to Mrs. Hiromi's surprise.

A lovely day of fortune smiles upon the Hiromi household. Not one but three guests welcome the atmosphere with their unusual presence. While guests number one and two: six-year-olds Suzie and Sally comfortably watch TV in another room, guest number three: Mrs. Birch vainly enjoys her stress relief therapy from the hostess Mrs. Hiromi who has a lot on her mind…

"You said _gap _in some form of Johto speak didn't you?" Mrs. Birch presses. "Is it something I should be concerned of?"

The older woman's straightforwardness makes Mrs. Hiromi blink twice as she struggles and fails at giving a proper answer. Eventually, the fallen marionette messiah gathers her composure and goes back to her original task.

"Hey Gil, would you believe me if I said being in this restricting outfit makes me think of some really silly things." Mrs. Hiromi begins uneasily.

"Do tell."

"W-well… May and I were just being a little silly earlier. Talking about things like dreams and a spirit world that contains all that…" she replies. "Foolish really, but May was really into it so I got pretty involved trading stories myself."

"Hah, are you going to start spouting crap like ghosts walk among us?"

"That'd be an insult to you; of course they do." Mrs. Hiromi answers. "Not just ghosts but many kind of apparitions tend to slip into our realm due to the fragile border separating the living and astra- Err…spirit world. It's quite a cruel joke… but Gil, you're pretty nonchalant about all this-"

"Hmph, we're having a conversation aren't we?" Mrs. Birch scoffs. "Soap Operas are always trying to pull some new gimmick to boost ratings. I remember seeing one with a ghost theme behind it a while back." The woman holds a smug expression as she stretches and says. "It helped pass time until something better came on but it didn't make it past ten episodes."

"That's just the model of today's society so it can't be helped." Mrs. Hiromi grins. "Still, I can't help but envy that kind of thinking… May has it all wrong…As complex and appealing the spirit world is it truly is a barren and ugly realm full of illusions and broken desires. No one should ever be deceived like that…"

"Hm? Goes against your religion?"

"No, I don't worry about things like that. It just troubles me that my precious May can't see the deceit! But, I think I finally figured out all her _world_ talk." Mrs. Hiromi continues knowingly. "It never made sense, everything she described stood apart from what we discussed. What my May described sounded far too vivid, far too submerged to be a mere illusion of the astral plane but too shielded to be anything from fractal… I was beating my brains about it but then I finally figured it out…It all adds up really, even if I think of back then…"

Though gossip like this isn't really in her interest, in order to quench her never-ending boredom, Mrs. Birch will even allow topics like this to steal five minutes of her precious time.

And because of this mindset, the woman chooses to give Mrs. Hiromi a two minute extension when she voices: "…My May's **inner world **must be an amazing place."

--

**Chapter 8a: Lost Wings III -Ruby and Sapphire-**

--

The streets of Petalburg City aren't as lively as they usually are. Due to an event gone wrong the only one's roaming about are those strong enough, those caught in the craziness, stray Pokemon confident enough in their escape tactics and the event Zubats who aren't too happy being around themselves.

Not paying the confusion any mind, a strong wind tears through scene. She got sidetracked, but meeting another set of interesting faces during her Hoenn experience is a welcome one, the old storage case full of handy tools is proof of the oddly lingering link. And with the proper description coming closer in sight, her determination grows as the kinship with the elemental she derives from deepens…

And with this kinship, the air around her twists and curves making her into a visible miniature tornado kicking up and tossing away any loose debris or fragile material around it.

Eventually, that tornado would disperse and reveal the form of girl falling to her knees and gasping for the air she was once submerged in.

"Torchic…I think…I think I found that place…" May exclaims between gasps for air. "Hah… My heart feels like it wants bust but _I _don't feel bad at all…"

Still gasping for air, the girl weakly faces her destination only a few blocks away.

_It's…weird…Being wind. I'm still human aren't I? But everything feels really clear…I wanna say it's weird… but it feels too familiar and…welcome. It makes me happy even when I shouldn't be…_

Though she'd kill for more rest, May instead hopes her newfound but familiar kinship will aid her once more and concentrates. Not really the most enjoyable or easiest thing for her, but with all time she spent with her tutor and that crazy angel, calming down isn't so bad.

Besides, this isn't for herself… That's why, with her elemental as guide, she needs to dive into the currents circling around her destination and separate the foreign from the familiar.

After a while, she sees a figure similar to that of a human but cannot confirm anything as that was quickly overlapped by a monstrous figure whose roar flashes blinding rays of light from its entire being. The heavy gust following that distorted image makes the girl stumble over and regret her previous actions.

"I-I felt something monstrous but that IS a monster, nya." She shudders. "Torchic… If you really are in there, I'm gonna spank you good for putting me through this!" May curses as she picks herself up and moves towards her destination.

--

(Planetarium: Stratosphere Lower Levels)

Mudkip studies his damaged surroundings curiously. That sneak doesn't seem to be around anymore but something still feels…

"Found you…! You little troublemaker." Brendan's voice wheezes from afar.

Mudkip keeps an indifferent expression as his partner takes his time to catch his breath, seeing Torchic alright and coming over to greet him is a plus though. On his end, Brendan continues his gestures while gripping a pocket-sized red device with the words 'CIEL' written on the back.

'Having an ID tracking program integrated into the Pokedex proves to be pretty handy.' Brendan confirms mentally. 'I need to thank the Professor when I see him later… And, I need to thank you too, Ciel…'

"Now that you had your fun… Can we leave now?" Brendan, Feeling a bit better, questions Mudkip who looks away. "I'm not giving you a choice!" the boy snaps as he recalls the mudfish into his Poke Ball.

Even without his glasses, Brendan makes a sure-hit at long range! And… this bothers him…

The boy gives an annoyed look as the mud fish Pokemon remains still and indifferent even when in the spherical container but shrugs it off. The brat will act up when it wants to; he should just enjoy the flow of pace. Brendan's expression lightens when the Pokedex begins to bleep furiously revealing a blip on its screen that points in Torchic's current location.

"Okay, okay. I think you work a little **too **well." Brendan confirms before calling out to Torchic. And good timing too, Brendan quickly notes that this room, unlike the ones they've been to so far seems far less _expansive _than the others and he'd rather not stick around in a suspicious room where the floor lacks any damage from the pillar of light yet contains destruction far beyond that of any floor visited thus far.

Rather than return to the stairwell and continue along their merry way the bleeping noise from the Pokedex reveals Torchic hasn't moved an inch. The chick Pokemon's actions annoy Brendan, but she's usually the sweet-tempered one of the three…

"Hey! I was trying to save my energy by **gesturing **to the satellites of water and fire this whole time and you couldn't catch a hint from **either **of them? What kind of trainer are you?" complains a female voice.

As the source of the voice is pretty unreliable, Brendan follows Torchic's gestures until she frantically points out a woman with light framed-glasses short, yet somewhat messy, orange hair, mostly wearing white trapped lower right leg down, under some debris.

Brendan gives a blank expression at this. He… really didn't see anyone there before… Some people are just too plain for their own good… Moreover…

On her end, the woman's patience is also reaching its peak but is quick to remember her situation. Judging from all actions and expressions made since entering this floor, the woman realizes that she's dealing with those obscure types of self-loathing individuals who have the tendency to runaway when unfavorable pressure is placed on them and their barely inexistent self-esteems.

Knowing this, she can easily play the domineering card and make the boy free her but she'd rather not be bothered with the burden of being saddled down to such a youth as a consequence and the psychological issues would be too messy…

"Well, your lack of basic visual capabilities isn't the most important aspect at the moment. You see me, so your objectives are clear now aren't they?" she retracts. "This is humiliating nevertheless… I swear this is the last time I wear these worthless things! They hindered my vision causing a dramatic decrease in my normal dashing functions! A perfect example to why contacts are the superior model I tell you! Ah! Silly me, prattling on like that," she retracts once more, "but as you can see, it's all I can technically do…" the woman gives a sheepish chuckle at her situation. "But seriously, I'm trapped and… you're technically inclined to assist me."

Torchic chirps blankly when Brendan hesitates, but for the woman that just means time for Phase II. "You are… you are a tester of sorts, correct? That unknown Pokedex model indicates this much. While I question the efficiency of any faction that will trust any child with two regional satellites nevertheless, who'd produce such an obscure design but as a programmer myself…" the woman grins weakly, grimacing briefly as she outstretches her right hand out to the boy. "The circumstances are regrettable, but I have to rely on the efforts of a reliable tester… A very interesting specimen you are indeed."

Brendan's expression hardens when the furious bleeps from the Pokedex give a new warning of Torchic's location. "…Guess your right. It really can't be helped, Ciel."

"Wha! Wait a second! You're foolish but you're also supposed to be soft! This isn't-- Isn't it every adolescent males dream to save a babe like me?" the woman questions disbelievingly when Brendan moves over to seize Torchic and only Torchic and with the struggling chick Pokemon in tow, now makes his way to the staircase.

"All those assumptions just because I'm a kid?" Brendan replies. "Tch! Who are you kidding? I already know I'm weak, but there's a big difference between being someone with a social phobia and someone who has a pessimistic view of the world. Also," the boy adds, "before anything else, my objective is…" Brendan's grip on Torchic and his Pokedex tightens. "My objective is to maintain the security of the Birch Numbers and Hi-Advanced Pokedex Program: Ciel. Rescuing you is just an unappealing random variable and no matter what scenario I play in my head there is no way I can make everyone happy. I'm sorry…"

"So am I…" the woman agrees uneasily, respecting the boy's resolve.

It's just not a resolve that sits well with Torchic! _Even if they can't say "please", you should always help those in need_, the words of Mrs. Hiromi burns in the chick Pokemon's heart. That woman hasn't said "please" but she needs help! Torchic knows she's only a little one who gets in the way, but even the little one has to come out on top eventually, right?

Even if that time isn't here, Torchic struggles until she breaks free from Brendan's grip with everything she is!

The chick Pokemon's courage surprises the woman as she races over to confines and uses those sharp things on her feet May describes to try and remove it. The woman appreciates the effort, but scratching is not going to make much of a difference here… Not that she's complaining though, so the chick Pokemon's sudden stop in her actions just to shudder confuses her…

That is until the miniature device she wears like a necklace and the lights around the room goes on the fritz. For them to act up like this--

"Augh!" Brendan yelps when his Pokedex acts the same. Luckily, he's able to grab the tossed item with his other hand before it can fall the floor. "Ach! Geez, she's overheating…!" Before Brendan can rightfully panic he instead gets annoyed as Mudkip thrashes about in an item he usually pops out of at will. Getting a better look, he quickly realizes the mud fish's Poke Ball is out of whack too. "Urgh, it's just one thing after another here!!"

As if living off Brendan's words of bad fortune, all electronics in the room begin to breakdown while the conditions of Torchic and the contained Mudkip worsen all before a massive wave of light breaks through the suspicious walls not too far from the room's current occupants.

Monstrous cries are heard as the wave begins to swell within the center. Eventually, the swell, along with the rest of the wave, disperse and reveals a four-legged gray plated Pokemon with a large horn where the swell once formed.

Bulky stature, plated gray body, a modern day face to a possibly prehistoric ancestor… The very image of the spikes Pokemon Rhyhorn. This Rhyhorn looks no different from the generalization of its species, except about its plated body lies many glistening green gems of various shape and size and it eyes, which are suppose to be the color red, are merely without pupils.

Not only did these changes give the creature an intimidating feel, great might follow the change. Proof enough comes from the surge of power the gems unleash when the deformed spikes Pokemon gives its trademark cry.

"Th-That's the outer space Pokemon?! I thought it was just a stupid gimmick!" Brendan, successfully on his rear thanks to Rhyhorn's cry, comments uneasily. The boy cries out in pain when his Pokedex short-circuits forcing him to drop it as a reflex.

"That creature… How did it--" the woman cuts herself before her frustration becomes more apparent. "Our top technology couldn't contain it?! Th-that can't be! I won't accept that!" she argues. "My schematics were perfect! There's no way--"

"Imperfection is the life of a scientist… Without it, mankind's greatest creations could never have come to be…" the voice of an elderly man reprimands.

The woman looks put off by the statement at first, but shows surprise when the small pile of rubble in front of Rhyhorn crumbles to reveal an elderly man holding some metal container, his male assistant and a flying-like Pokemon whose most distinguishing traits are the various shades of brown on its plumage, it's large piercing red eyes and even larger eyebrows of sorts. All three of them look as if they seen better days as they face down the deformed spikes Pokemon.

"D-Doctor?! B-but why are you still--"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" the elderly man counters. As much as the elderly man wants to continue chewing out his associate, he quickly notes Brendan. "Wha! Why is there a child still running around here? I thought all civilians have been escorted to lower levels!"

"There's a child here?" the woman questions, further grating Brendan's nerves.

"Doctor, c-could it be that he possibly didn't here the warning? Or probably got caught in the confusion?" the assistant suggests, adding that he remembers hearing some complaints going on in the thermosphere and exosphere pavilions.

"There's no time worrying about that!" the elderly man snaps. He then turns to Brendan. "You, boy, you're behind an exit. Stop dawdling and move! We'll take care of any problems here! The same goes to sluggish volunteers!" the elderly man notes for the woman.

It was quick, but Brendan and the woman both share a quick feeling of annoyance.

'Tch, useless adult, who is HE talking to like that?' Brendan scoffs to himself. Muttering something like "never wanted to bothered coming to this place anyway", Brendan grabs his Pokedex and (out of spite), picks himself up lazily.

The woman watches the boy with disinterest before turning back to her allies. "Well yes, but… the circumstances are rather unfavorable." The woman grins weakly gesturing to her current situation. The elderly man shows disappointment at the lack of morale amongst cohorts, but before he can comment on it his assistant stands.

"Doctor, at this point I really don't think escape makes much of a difference." The assistant does everything he can to hold in some composure after using such cool words. "Doctor…" he continues. "What's the status on _that_?"

The elderly man checks the gauge on his metal container and curses. "Charging is only at sixty-eight percent and stabilizing! This could be all we can possibly hope for at this point!"

"Just a little more!" the assistant argues. "Let's hold out for a little more! I want to believe in the research everyone poured their hearts into! If that thing is the only thing that can neutralize a Pokemon like this, then we should at least get the bar a bit higher!"

The woman and the elderly man remain silent at their colleague's optimistic-to-the-point-it's-unprofessional-idealism. While the man tries to argue his position Rhyhorn doesn't seem to care or better yet, realize anyone is there. It's just remains in place, growling lowly while those gems on its body begin to lose their luster…

'Something that can neutralize Pokemon like _that_?' Brendan question mentally before remembering his position. 'Well, at least not all grownups outside LittleRoot and Oldale are useless.'

No longer seeing the reason to dawdle, Brendan picks himself up. The only thing that stops the boy from racing over to the shuddering Torchic is the caution of not wanting to draw Rhyhorn's attention and that flying Pokemon… it's staring at him, as if it's judging him…

Sure, a Noctowl looking at you with its usual poker face would give one that vibe, if not, feelings of looming caution-- No matter what it was trying to obtain, Noctowl slowly shifts its attention to Torchic then back to Brendan before ascending to the air. Never letting its eyes off its target regardless of its gaining height.

"Ah! You feel the same way too Noctowl?" the assistant questions. Noctowl doesn't answer, but the assistant pays that no mind. "That outer space Pokemon… I didn't want to believe it but it may truly have the power to negate the level of its opponent… Still, on Earth a Level 12 is a Level 12! A Level 30 like Noctowl will not fall!" the assistant's determination grows as he faces down the extraterrestrial menace. "Doctor, how much time left?"

"…Sixty-nine percent."

The assistant is shaken after hearing this but holds his ground growling: "Just a bit more… We need more time! Noctowl! Special Effect: Hypnosis!"

Noctowl hears the command but doesn't act immediately. Still ascending higher while never losing watch of Brendan, everything around the owl Pokemon including the owl Pokemon itself, appear to distort on prolonged watch. And, with a blurred glint in its left eye the lights circling Rhyhorn, the elderly man, assistant and itself burst apart.

Even though the gems on its body resonate, Rhyhorn remains still, now prey to the owl Pokemon of night who sends three illusionary copies while it remains in place.

Noctowl hears various noises from the humans but ignore them. To revere something so destructive… Noctowl would much rather have used its prior attack on that monstrosity! But then again, a target like that requires **direct **visual contact from the eyes of body and mind. It can't afford to make the mistakes of its fellows--

A quick bout of irrationalness that cost its illusions hit Noctowl when that creature becomes more willing to give a cry. Noctowl is able to overcome but outstretches its sight back to the innocents on the other side, locking focus on the slowly approaching Torchic. The effort from another of feathers is always appreciated but this won't do, capability is severely lacking and the essence of fear is oozing from it, can this little one really be a Pokemon?!

Noctowl sends down three new illusions which move at greater zeal than before! Torchic shivers briefly, mostly due to Rhyhorn's disposition, but continues to ignore Brendan's calls to timidly chirp while moving ahead. This is bad, Noctowl realizes, perhaps this little one is under that creature's _essence _in a form that its fellows (and possibly, itself) weren't! How can Noctowl forget that; just by staring it down its allies went against their nature and, with those spherical containers unable to recall them, became savages that fought until felled by each other, exhaustion or that bringer of destruction below it…

…That's why Noctowl can't let that little one charge mindlessly any further! It'll swoop down and-- However… it does look pretty fragile…the poor thing might break the moment Noctowl seizes it… That kind of innocence is quite tasty, nice to corrupt but better to ea--No!! Noctowl really wishes it take of that monstrosity its way! And luckily, if those two humans don't hurry up, it can freely carryout orders a higher power entrusted it!

"Stop being naïve!" Noctowl hears the elderly man roar. "Seventy-one percent is more than a luxury than we can afford! I'm activating it, NOW!" Running a quick numerical code to activate the metal container's release button, the elderly man quickly grips a Poke Ball with a unique red gem as its front button. "It's hit or miss! Crème of Devon Corp. Labs, I entrust it to you, Dynamo Ball!"

"Dynamo Ball?!" Brendan questions. "He's actually activating it? That goes against current protocols!" the woman snaps.

"D-Doctor, please wait!" the assistant pleas.

"There's no such thing as waiting to the old! Go, Dynamo Ball!"

The item dubbed Dynamo Ball seems no different from other Poke Balls when thrown that is, until the item opens up prematurely releasing some shimmering substance around the caster, prey and anything in range before nets of red light lash out at the target Pokemon, constricts it, then falls to the floor.

Rhyhorn is agitated but…

"…Th-That's it…" the assistant mutters. "That doesn't at all looked like what was simulated."

"…That's because, it's a dud." The elderly man replies. The assistant turns to his superior for advice only to reel back when seeing a corrosive red residue making work of his skin. "Enough," he says when his assistant panics. "This prototype was a dud from the start, failure is part of science. It will all be added to the report, nothing more."

"B-But Doctor--"

"Enough! Worry a bit about yourself if hazardous effects really bother you."

The assistant grimaces but feels greater unease at the blood dripping from the hand the elderly man used for the Ball. Before he can argue or command to Noctowl to use Whirlwind, Rhyhorn's cry averts attention back to the problem at hand.

Rhyhorn's cries grow louder as the net of red light attempts to settle itself, or in actuality, sink into its target, which seems pretty painful given Rhyhorn's reactions. Despite that, Torchic slowly moves ahead for reasons beyond anyone.

"Damn, she's not listening!" Brendan growls. "And going over there looks dangerous for a human at this point…" Brendan pulls out Mudkip's Poke Ball and furiously mashes the front button only to curse when the item still proves busted. And thanks to the see-through top Brendan can easily see the look on Mudkip's face.

For those who seen them, Mudkips are noted to be cute even when upset, however the look on THIS Mudkip seems…ready for serious bloodletting. Something that easily works Brendan's already weak nerves. "Y-you think I like sitting around like this?!" he snaps. "Instead of giving me faces why not--!! Rrrrgh! Can't think under crap like this!!"

Brendan's grip on Mudkip's Ball tightens as his frustration reaches its peak. Just when the boy is about to smash the item against the ground, he instead calms down enough to pick up a sharp rock and jab it through the Poke Ball's side with the fury put back for his earlier resolve. "Pierce…through!" the boy yells during his most heavy jab. Be it the previous hammering or the "energy" he put into his most recent blow, the side of the Poke Ball is successfully punctured and now given the stubborn can against an aged can-opener treatment before malfunctioning and bursting open, freeing an annoyed Mudkip.

Mudkip doesn't bother acknowledging his _partner_; he's the one that got hurt so why is that idiot falling to his knees with that look? Geez, he's even breathing like he had to lift something heavy, what a hopeless guy. Screw him; Mudkip can't waste time trying to understand that guy… Not when the bastard who's been haunting him since this mess started is right in front of him! Watching that oversized freak show Mudkip feels his blood rising… And Torchic-- Mudkip rushes to his friend's side.

The woman watches the duo in amusement. Though not many know of it, she's pretty sure that boy must've known about the emergency release on the **back **on the Poke Ball. Poke Balls (especially these newer mass-produced models) breakdown a lot after all, so a safety release was implied to counter this defect. All it needs is a hair pin or a pointed object to jimmy the switch, but to dissect the item all about the sides…

Looks like that child has some serious anger issues… That's pretty amusing.

That is, until Rhyhorn gives its most piercing cry after a bunch of gems on its body shatter due to the effects of the net. Stilling hollering, the deformed spikes acts as if bolted in place as it thrashes it's head about violently all while its remaining gems release a vengeful surge of power matching it's mighty cry!

Yup, nothing amusing about this situation, especially when your staring imminent Armageddon in the face. Noctowl probably realizes this best and decides to snatch up the damaged Dynamo Ball when swooping down and escaping back into suspicious walls it came from in the swift yet silent disposition its species is praised for.

"N-Noctowl--Ack!!" the assistant shrieks after a burst of heat grazes him. And the source?

Only a few feet away from the deformed spikes Pokemon, Torchic drowns in her personal darkness, finding her only release in the form of a small field of flames that engulfs her, replacing her dull feathers with a glossy new coat in the process. This only furthers Rhyhorn's berserker status, bringing about a greater luster to its active gems to the point a momentary flash alongside sounds of shattering glass engulfs the area…

…Before revealing ripples of light and flame to the naked eye of man…

Although the defiance of reality only expose themselves around the berserker Rhyhorn, flame diluting Torchic and anything else close by, the woman is still very much freaked out.

"Hey, snap out of it and call those satellites back! What kind of man loses himself at such a crucial moment? Hey!!" she yells at Brendan. No good, he's totally out of it. She can only watch helplessly as the satellite of water charges ahead like a fool only to get sucked in by a flaming ripple that opens up behind Torchic and gets spit out as a blue ball of flames from a flaming ripple that opens up a few feet above the chick Pokemon moments later.

She can't help but cringe when hearing the high-pitched yelp the mud fish makes when hitting the floor.

"Doctor!" the voice of the assistant shouts frantically. The various ripples blocks the woman from seeing it, but the elderly man slumps down against the wall with the red residue looking worse than before. "Doctor, stay strong! I know help will-- Doctor, answer me! Doc-"

"…I told you to worry about yourself didn't I…?"

The assistant flinches. Not just from the harshness from his superior's tone but the red residue beginning to take shape on **his **skin. Reality finally sinking into his protégé is always a good thing, but, the elderly man's eyes are only on the deformed spikes Pokemon.

With a weary expression he observes as the gems again lose its luster when the Rhyhorn begins to get sucked into what it conjures. The satellite of fire seems to be suffering the same fate but this Pokemon that defies reality or more so, the hold items that won't let go…

"Hmph, so we've been betrayed, huh?" the elderly man mutters.

The first time that creature exploded with power the gems released a massive pillar of light as a shield against a trainer whose Pokemon held an elemental advantage. However, it expanded and wiped out everything in the room. Plenty of injuries about but no death, though it's unknown what became of the trainer and his Pokemon, too much confusion to notice.

Now a new duo will go unnoticed just the same. It's just a shame his protégé will be unable to pave his own future…

'The elemental that molds all elementals… I see this goes beyond mans boundaries but you don't care do you? Is this the _future _you wanted to mold with your hands…? Damn you, Mithra…!'

With detonator, host and catalyst gone, the ripples left behind begin to distort and grow unstable. They continue to carry on the deformed spikes Pokemon's legacy by ignoring the boundaries of reality when they slowly but surely drag themselves towards each other and force the center they mutually seek to sink within itself.

Luckily for them, the woman won't be the only one witnessing their greatness. Brendan doesn't really get time to react to the damage before him or the state of Mudkip when he finally got over whatever got to him, not when a giant fissure floating in mid-air is the first thing he lifts himself to see.

And within that fissure holds something about blow like a volcano…

"Well, I guess it can't be helped huh, Ciel?" Brendan mutters sadly when engulfed in a brilliant spectrum of light.

--

"Brendan…!" Mrs. Birch voices aloud.

Mrs. Hiromi blinks blankly at the older woman's outburst.

"…Hah, just now, my idiot son has gone and done something incredibly stupid. As expected of someone so hopeless…" Mrs. Birch sighs with a tone of regret.

Mrs. Hiromi watches the woman with a bit of surprise but eventually softens. "Gil has an amazing level of Mother's Intuition, I really envy that."

"As if I want to be told these things by you."

"…I think Gil worries too much, Brendan is a pretty resourceful young man. But if you think something bad happened, then we should--"

"I just said he's doing something incredibly stupid nothing out of the ordinary!" Mrs. Birch snaps. "In any case, you've been way too quiet. Nothing left to brag about your oh-so-precious daughter? You just mutter some crap about _inner world _and just giggled to yourself the whole time."

"Ah! Gil was interested in such a thing?"

"I didn't tell you to shut up, did I?"

"Umm… Perhaps for another chapter?" When Mrs. Birch wants to know what the hell she's talking about, Mrs. Hiromi quickly goes back to massaging. "Ahh Gill's got such a ridged back, it feels like I've been doing this for months…"

"SHUT UP!"

--

With heavy damage and severe burns on its plated body, Rhyhorn gives off a piercing cry as a few of its gems burst. Torchic is afraid but holds her ground.

It hasn't been very long since Torchic got separated from her friends, she doesn't remember how it happened but she remembers coming to this place (or… what's left of it at this point) when entering the building. With that in consideration, she's VERY happy those group of humans and their Pokemon (specifically the serious looking man with the mustache in the front-center currently ordering the gray thing he calls Machop) for recovering her. Her tiny left wing really hurts though…

The Rhyhorn gives out another sharp cry after Machop successfully lands a beatdown in the form of (given the stuff Torchic seen on that glowing box) a one-two jab then uppercut followed by rising knee thrust, giving the superpower Pokemon leverage to grab Rhyhorn's horns with both hands then shin up it in such a way that it's actually stomping on its opponents face. Machop then finishes its pummeling by slamming down its hands on Rhyhorn's head shattering more gems and helps it gain the moment needed to return to its allies looking really cool!

Scariest part of all is the superpower Pokemon doesn't even look like its using **any **of its **real **power when doing all that.

"Good job! Blitz it before it has a chance to retaliate!" Machop's trainer orders. Machop complies by rushing at its foe, applying all impact power into the grip it makes on Rhyhorn's horn and lower jaw. When the Pokemon known for hurling a hundred adult humans without a sweat struggles to lift this unmoving beast its trainer growls: "Alien Pokemon or not, this thing's one tough bastard…" he then turns to the rest of his team. "Alright you punks, time to show those evolution-mongers the true strength of this taming unit!"

After the sharpness in their superior's voice, his unit, who are just two high school volunteers, share an uneasy glance then turn to their Pokemon who return the gesture.

When the man repeats his order with greater gruffness the girl of the duo, a blonde-haired (though possibly dyed) confident over-achiever joining as an internship to one day realize her dream of becoming a Pokemon Ranger, has the butterfly Pokemon Beautifly flutter its wings and cast Silver Wind with all its visual grace whereas the boy, a slightly younger pink-haired proud under-achiever joining to skip class, has his slacker buddy, the numb Pokemon Numel release an Ember attack brimming with dull flames that met with Beautifly's elegant wind.

Despite the clashing appeals, the properties of flame meld with the sparkling flow of air creating a shimmering firestorm heading Machop and Rhyhorn's way. Despite the risk, Machop struggles to hold its position as it continues to deny the Rhyhorn the methods its instincts cry out for most.

With the superpower Pokemon holding it down and a strong projectile coming its way, the gems on the deformed spikes Pokemon match its frustration by blinking continuously while the damaged ones release an unsettling foam that really seem to agitate its host considering the tone of extreme pain within Rhyhorn's cry.

Machop's trainer can only grimace when his partner is taken along for the ride when Rhyhorn briefly gets on its hind legs before coming down with force when shattering the ground under its forelegs due to a mixture of its power and the thick animation of its crushing claws tearing through the area around it.

Those "Crush Claws" also serve as the agent needed to knockoff (and deal decent damage to) Machop and have everyone else have a little taste of that firestorm.

Torchic, like her saviors, is knocked back but is too far for those mild flames to mean anything. The cries of that behemoth no matter how far however… Torchic ignores her personal pains to hastily jump up and see the deformed spikes Pokemon thrash about under a number of thick nets.

"Uggh… All hands, status report!" the unit leader, who took the brunt of the flames, growls.

"I-I'm fine sir," the girl answers, "but that Rhyhorn--"

"Heheh… N-nothing me and my buddy can't handle." The boy grins. After wiping some soot from his face, he gives Numel a well-deserved pat on the hump. In response to this, the numb Pokemon, who numbly holds its ground, reveals dullness in its eyes before toppling over. "Wha! Hey, snap out of it! Here's not the place to take a nap!" he panics.

"It looks like it lost the will to fight." The girl comments before realizing what she just said. "You ass! Just what kind of fire/ground hybrid of all things faints to a weak fire attack anyway?!"

"Umm… There was bug in that attack too…"

"That's not important!" she snaps. "How many times do I have to tell you to input link move commands before you attack? Numels are just one giant opening, use some defensive move after every attack! Especially when it's a Numel used by **you**, who'd just rush in with no skill whatsoever!"

The boy grips his partner protectively as he gives the girl a harsh look. "Okay, first of all, Pokemon aren't computers! Second, why bother mouthing me off when you should be saving your gums for Beautifly! I'm sure he'd love to know you care!"

The girl gives a hurt expression before gesturing to the butterfly Pokemon overhead.

"Silver Wind, though not Beautifly's best or most stable move IS still its trademark **and **can prove useful strategically if the Beautifly in question is competent enough to pool the attack to its fullest." She explains. "It's still a move that leaves them exposed during the cast so, you **need** to have moves like Stun Spore or Protect linked before and after that move to keep it up to speed and closer to victory. If you actually tried teaching your Pokemon how to **at most **link a few moves together you probably won't lose so much. So, try keeping that in mind, dropout boy."

"Scholarship dropout."

"What did you-"

"That's enough out of both of you!" the man growls. "Does this look like the playground to either you?! Stay focused or get out here, I won't say this again!"

When both teens (and Torchic) flinch and apologize, the man glares at his opponent and curses his odds. Outer Space Pokemon, huh? As much as he'd like to scoff that, he's battled plenty of Rhyhorn trainers in his days and though tough, none of them exceeded the realism of stamina and a good old fashioned Machop beatdown. The dons of the family were another story…

But looking inside his Poke Ball the man can only grit his teeth when watching his longtime ally grimace and grip its right arm tightly. Though a Machop, the three ridges on its head look jagged giving it, along with its slight difference in height and better toned body, an older look to over all.

With that said the aged superpower Pokemon should be grateful experience in evasive recalls is why it's not in as bad shape as it should be. Still, getting pushed back this far by some hatchling lost in its own power…?

The superpower Pokemon expresses no shock when its longtime fighting buddy calls him back to the battlefield. In fact, it grins when ordering to go as far as making that monstrosity faint if it has to.

It **does **show some surprise when its subordinate flutters down beside it and curls and uncurls its mouthpiece threateningly at Rhyhorn however.

"Sir, requesting to supply offensive support!" the girl, back on her feet, voices. "Beautifly hasn't touched its limits yet, it can still fight!"

"I usually prefer being the front man but, I'll settle for utility and um… visual aide this time, Sir." The boy adds. He grips Numel as it weakly stretches out to the foe afar.

The two volunteers (and Torchic) display frustration when their leader remains silent as Machop races towards its foe having its arms crossed in an X styling.

"…It looks like I was incorrect…" the man scoffs. "It doesn't matter what region you're from, as long as you hold the title of Pokemon trainer, you were born to fight! Whatever you do, I expect to see your all!"

The two youths don't react to their leader's morale boost immediately, but get to business with great vigor when they do.

And as such, the boy turns to Torchic. "Heh heh, the little cutie is still here? Seriously though, you really should split. Sure, even we dropouts have our pride but there's no pride in getting turned into road kill when you can't even land a hit in."

"Hey, stay focused!" the girl snaps, repeating her orders for an X-Attack and X-Accuracy.

Torchic hesitates; her friends are still up there after all. But she shivers when hearing Rhyhorn's piercing cry. She really wants to run but she has to be reliable too…

"Run," the boy repeats, "we got this. At least if you get out safe then we can say we're doing our job. Besides, I won't be getting beat anytime soon so hurry up! …Or do you want to partner up with me and my buddy?"

Torchic backs away slowly after hearing that.

"Well, if that's what you want then you should hop on in now." He smiles, gesturing an empty Poke Ball Torchic's way.

_"You can stay here as long as you like, happy now?"_ are the words of acceptance that echoes throughout Torchic's heart.

That's right… She has a place where she's happiest; a life she now has from her own free will, so why does everyone want to take that…?

_"Human and Pokemon, some are born with unbalanced power, while unfortunate ones like yourself are born to be their food… Such a one-sided world this is…"_ the lady enchantress' words are making a bit of sense now…

…Horrible… It's too horrible and she wants no part in it!

"…All civilians successfully evacuated on this level, Sir." The boy confirms, patting Numel's head reassuringly.

"Good job." The man replies. With the morale spread out and all hindrances clear, the man glares down his invulnerable foe. "I really don't know what the hell God was thinking when he sent monstrosities like you to our world. But whatever you're after you'll never sabotage the bond between man and Pokemon! Bring it on, you damned Alien!"

Rhyhorn's cries along with the sounds of massive damage symbolize the start of the final battle. However, as she chooses to not witness it, Torchic still gets notice of this as the impact of destruction throws her forward.

The chick Pokemon winces a bit but she wonders how those people are holding up…

_"You're too small to be good for anyone; get behind me before you get hurt!"_ the words that remind her where she stands help the chick Pokemon shakily get up and continue to run.

Though running is a bit tricky when your eyes start getting all watery.

The burbling in her belly is picking at her more than ever too! Every time that happens though, May was there to makes those bad feelings go away. But this time--Why is she thinking about all that?! Her friends, those nice people…!

Because her legs keep moving, Torchic makes a few turns around various places until she finds herself at a dead end. She gives this little notice however; getting the water out of her eyes gets higher notice…

That doesn't stop Torchic from jumping when a loose brick leaves its craft and decides to loudly join her side. This upsets her but the distraction does make her act on a priority higher than crying… That being running to May's side, that is.

Torchic is so happy to see May the fact the girl is slumped against a wall with cuts and bruises that look worse with every gaining step amongst a heavily damaged area doesn't seem to trigger. Then again, the damaged area would explain the two people wearing the clothes her protectors did in worse shape than May…

Torchic remains oblivious to all this and selfishly cuddles against May's arm, gaining no response no matter how affectionate her rubs. The chick Pokemon doesn't give up and simply switches sides before trying to nudge May's legs. Whatever her efforts the results remain the same… With reality settling down on the chick Pokemon once more she only chirps tearfully while taking it upon herself to nestle between May's right arm.

Probably all this is just those bad dreams May talks of… She should just close her eyes…

"…It's hot… Go sleep somewhere else…!"

Torchic jumps out of reflex from the typical complaint but brightens soon after when realizing what this means: And Torchic is just happy to know the one most important to her is alright! She doesn't really get the whole mutterings about this "smokehouse scent" thing, but who cares!

"Urrgh… yes, that's definitely it…there's no denying it now…" one of the downed staff workers replies weakly. "The reviving smell of a smokehouse…! As a man who spends every Friday evening eating at one I can definitely assure you that's the real deal!" he confirms, raising his head with a vigor that matches his words.

Since all he sees is the same stubborn kid from earlier and some orange Pokemon, he decides to give up on tracing that lingering yet mouth-watering smell and looks for his partner. With there being no chance in hell that he'll look behind in his state, he opts to loudly call his name, earning a firm "Shaddup" from far behind. The idiot is alive apparently, the guy doesn't even wanna know what one would look like after staying by the door rather than push away a trespasser even when it's pretty obvious that outer space Pokemon is close and about to blow its top.

That idiot must regret not trying to be a hero, the man figures even if that said idiot is sitting up and in a lot better shape than some bigger idiot lying on the ground. If anything, the dirt and debris looks… placed…

Torchic turns back to May when she pulls the right side of her feathery face. Right… This whole mess was never meant to be either of their problems and worse off, May got hurt looking for her when she had no say in this to begin with…

The chick Pokemon feels apologetic and readily awaits punishment but May needs to stop teasing her like this first. She's not really an expert at it, but usually not looking so happy in a sad way is usually the first step right…?

Well, May's grip got tighter so that's something of a start.

"Torchic you…!" May begins. "Do you always do what others tell you?" she says to Torchic's surprise. "I'M the one who took you in, so you should be listening to ME! You're… my little one who I said I'd protect… so… let me protect you okay…?"

Torchic chirps blankly and leaves it at that. Everything within her pretty much stops when hearing the cries of the deformed spikes Pokemon.

"Y-You gotta be kidding me! After all this that thing still hasn't been stopped?!" The staffer on the ground growls.

As if answering the question, the deformed spikes Pokemon gives a loud cry that sounds closer than previous ones. Not something that pleases the odd party.

"Tch! What a waste!" the other staffer mutters. His only chance at having a legit excuse to not be on his feet while on the job and this nonsense re-rears itself. Pushing off the debris, the man impresses those watching by jumping to his feet nimbly before falling onto his face due to his legs falling asleep.

"This is because you're a vegan you know…" the staffer on the ground comments.

"Shaddup…"

Another nearing cry from the deformed spikes Pokemon puts an end to all would-be light-heartedness. Torchic chirps softly when May quickly grabs her and shields her from the world's dangers in a protective hug.

She chirps even more from the tender warmth their hug creates but along the soothing warmth she also feels May's wincing and begins to think back to the girl's injuries with uneasiness.

_"_…_ Tor…chic…nya? …I hope…I can give you a better name…one…da…"_

Torchic rubs against May fondly at the memory. She really has no problem being her little one and is basically living a dream… Everything should be fine…

Torchic chirps when noticing May's hold around her tightens while promising to keep her safe no matter what, just like she promised since the day they met…

…Everything should be fine just like this…

_"I'll work things out so you two can play together everyday."_

Then why does she try so hard? To make May like her and be helpful to the lady enchantress is the most obvious answer at first and that seems to be going very well to boot. But why did she pull that stunt with that monster? She seriously lacks that "Burning Power of Infinite Courage" those humans in bright colors on the glowing box talk about all the time even if she IS infinitely burning but did that crazy thing anyway…

_"Run, we got this. At least if you get out safe then we can say we're doing our job."_

That's true isn't it? All she's been is a crying survivor accepting help from anyone. But when she tries to help even if she's giving it her all, she still ends up needing it because she's not strong right? She's just a little one….

_"Do you wish to know your blessing little one? That very depravity that differentiates the standards of human and Pokemon! You, of course!"_

Her blessing is…herself… Torchic **still **doesn't get what the lady enchantress means and it doesn't come to her in final second explosion of valor either. Despite that, fear, confusion or any kind of nervousness aren't among the chick Pokemon's feelings. In fact, when hearing another of the deformed spikes Pokemon's nearing cries the burbling in her belly lacks that wave of displeasure within it… Just an indifferent coolness…

Torchic chirps softly before cuddling against May as much as she can before wriggling free from her grip. Even if it means using the sharp thing May showed her to gain the ability to do so.

"Wh-what's wrong with you? I said I'd protect you didn't I? I- I know I wasn't always the nicest to you but--" May winces but that doesn't stop her from hiding her blush. "If it's just a little one like you I'd-- Stop trying to scare me all the time…!"

You know what? Being _little one _is a good enough for someone like her…

Just hearing those kinds of words makes the burbling within find their release. The usual result don't occur though, the chick Pokemon just feels a wave of tranquil heat traveling within her body with the belly being the lighthouse beacon to guide it all.

This feeling kind of scares her a bit…

"Just let it be," the other staffer reasons when tired of hearing May call out to the exiting chick Pokemon, "I'm no expert at this stuff but if their trainer means enough to them a Pokemon will throw away everything to keep them safe, respect it's resolve." He snaps before giving it more thought. "But still, to be able to do that to creatures who can destroy the world if they wanted… Is it even fair to call you guys human?"

"…She wants to…protect…**me?!** Don't be stupid Torchic! I won't allow it!" May shouts. With the chick Pokemon refusing to respond to her, May struggles to pick herself, eventually managing to lean against the wall. "What's wrong with you? I won't allow this insubordination! If you go I'll-- I don't want to…"

Torchic hears the calls but this can't go on anymore…everyone being like this…

Those sharp things on her feet, the flames within and, her blessing…

She has her decision: Until she can get better methods… Torchic will… She will protect what's important, her way!

**Flaring resolve! The Satellite of Fire launches!**

**To be continued**

--

(Notes)

Alongside the element(s) that describes you comes a "plus", "negative" and a "neutral" trait. Some tend to start at one and stay at that, others constantly change depending on the situation or who we're dealing with. But ultimately, it is only you who can control yourself and who want to be.

I'm really going to write that elemental chart alongside the next Intermission. I'm actually pretty excited.

**1. **Originally this chapter wasn't supposed to turn out so long (Sure, I planned the two part split for dramatic effect but this wasn't the ending I had in mind). But when writing I suddenly didn't like the idea of the crisis at being a main character only affair and wanted to show some of the staff doing their job/reacting to the situations which ultimately made me scrap the original version of **Part A **to this chapter (**Part B **only received slight changes at the start sorta work out better that way anyway) and well… anyway we got a new chapter of sorts under our belt didn't we?

So to make a small tribute to circumstance, I'll give a light profile about our one-shot characters appeared thus far in Hurricane:

Other May: First appears vocally in **Chapter 1 Part 2**. Appears fully in **Chapter 2**, is finally defeated in **Chapter 3**.Also known as: Dark Soul May, Keeper of Memories or…

One of the two "defense mechanisms" as Mrs. Hiromi calls them. Really (as said by the **other **contributor to May Hiromi's creation) they are the "guardian properties" that makes May Hiromi whole until May found a way to support her own existence. One who has endured and witnessed every change and reset made within May's core, and bears a great hatred of Mrs. Hiromi, the other (missing) guardian along with "this" May and deeply desires the return of something lost but will never truly return. "Ufufu you're quite a messed up one, aren't you? At least I won't be bored, so please entertain me well, little silhouette".

She tries to entice May and make her an embodiment of what she once was prior to events of **Chapter 0s** but ultimately never stood a chance due to the erratic nature and mindset that made "this" May in control. In a final act of defiance to her will, May rips her out from her soul losing any chance of obtaining memories contained from her past as a result. Past is past anyway though, right?

Regardless, the damage of May's interactions with her are remain, instilling the ideals of hate, fear and mistrust into the girl's heart. However, May also learned that all negativities in the heart can be overcome if the will to seize your justice is stronger. She never stood a chance indeed…

An entity that existed before her time. Though destroyed, her story is far from over… A scorned guardian that will haunt the one that shunned her.

The young woman being consumed by a Wave: First appears in **Chapter 4**. A young woman who dropped out of high school and lives in obscurity with her parents. "This world and its people… it's ugly… I hate it… When will they all… go away". Quit school due to being picked on too much by her mean-spirited peers and lack of support from school staff, grew to hate humanity and has very little value of living… Be it others or herself. Rarely goes outside but her mother forces her to every so often. She says being out in this world of false light is when her soul deteriorates most.

Since getting purified by May Hiromi she's been in a comatose state due to the Wave's assimilation of a great deal of her soul and time spent within her as well as the heavy damages to what's left due to the unstable power release from the mentally unstable May.

Her fate is currently unknown. A young woman perpetually in darkness…

The trainer: First appears in **Chapter 3**. A Pokemon trainer nothing more. Like many, he also has a dream of being top in a said field. That being Double Battle. "Leo, Rona, our dance will definitely become Hoenn's best". An easygoing and friendly person at heart who tends to help others in need. Currently somewhere in Hoenn continuing his training regime and has become tougher when training his Poochyena, Rona. Is picky about the Pokemon he catches (only wants exotic looking ones) and currently owns two badges.

Currently trying to figure out how to get to Dewford Island. A Pokemon trainer through and through. Good luck!

The elderly scientist: Appears in **this chapter**. A man who treats the idea of science as he does life: One full of trial and error. "If you haven't made an error yet you haven't lived". He's very strict to those around him despite that, many just think he's an old man bitter that the world of bright minds will overtake his generation but in fact, he's very passionate about his field and wants the future to be left in capable hands.

He seems to a chronic gambler. A gutsy old man that loves rough odds.

The elderly scientist's assistant: Appears in **this chapter**. A brilliant individual whose idealism gets the better of him. "The world is constantly evolving, but for the world to do that, growth in technology is needed. That's why, I refuse to believe any technology was made with the intents of harming anyone from its creation." Sees the elderly man as something of a father-figure due to his lack of one as a child.

Somewhere in his twenties. A person who dreams of making a difference with his trade.

The leader of the taming unit and his Machop: Appears in **this chapter**. A strong duo who heralds from Kanto, the region of war machine trainers. Machop is his first and only Pokemon by choice and they've been through a lot together. A duo who belongs to the Kanto military coming to Hoenn alongside some other soldiers as an assignment to deliver the outer space Pokemon found in the Fuchsia City Safari Zone to the Hoenn Planetarium hence keeping the already poor relationship between Kanto/Johto and Hoenn stable.

Despite being critical of the region (as critical as he is of those who see Pokemon evolution as a way to power) they remain as requested to keep watch of the creature. However, they were placed on a low-rank taming unit with no relation to the target despite all that…

The man is in his forties and has a wife and two daughters waiting back in Vermillion City while Machop, despite it's appearance, is a very tidy individual and enjoys housework. No nonsense super guys.


	15. Speed Priority and Peace Offerings

**Disclaimer-** I don't own Pokemon or anything else.

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Those sharp things on her feet, the flames within and, her blessing… They're not much but, until she can change, Torchic will use what she has to protect what's important to her, her way!

That's why the chick Pokemon moved as fast as her little legs can carry as she lures that monstrosity as far away from May as possible!

And, in combination with the great sacrifices those before her put into beating it down, her efforts prove successful: The outer space Rhyhorn, despite possessing the awesome power of a possible far away cosmos, only has the natural instincts of its species to blame for its downfall.

For every mindless rampage the moment it got excited, every reckless explosion of massive intergalactic energy against foes who overwhelm it, the gem-like materials on its body illuminate not only to emphasize its tremendous power but also as the ignored gauge suffering massive breakdown due to being handled by a Neanderthal.

Chasing after Torchic in its already critical state force all remaining or already damaged gems on the mutated spikes Pokemon's body to ruin and shatter, allowing an unsettling foam-like material to ooze through the gem cracks freely, bringing it great agitation as a result. Its attempt to send a vehicle (that its feeble target ran around) flying only ends with a good deal of the foam material giving the vehicle a new paint job as the mutated spikes Pokemon finally reveals mortality and collapses.

Torchic isn't interested in WHY it collapsed (though it stopping is more than welcome), but it going down just means that it's finally over…

It's funny, she knows nothing impressive got done on her end but, she can't help but feel as if she got a bit stronger today. Or at least, seems a lot better off than how she used to be.

The chick Pokemon can't help but feel shameless in her thinking but now, maybe, just maybe, she can finally go to where her closest friend is and finally, set things right.

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Hungry…

Torchic pretty much lost track of just how long she had to keep herself inside that red-white toy thing but the realization of how long it's been since she's last eaten felt like AGES!

Looking out to a massive world painted in translucent red, she couldn't help but feel a little down…

**In a den of strangers with no foothold of your own, an unfair compromise has been made…**

Torchic snapped to attention when her red-white thing was tapped by another just like hers. Good thing too, she was about to cry again and the last thing she wanted was to look like a baby in front of her closest friend.

Not that he minded her crying; he was actually the first to calm her down when she did, really!

Despite being in his red-white toy thing, Torchic's friend wasn't some steely-eyed brown thing, he was a **green**, always steely-eyed thing with a puffy looking tail! He's a cool guy who was sometimes really nice and other times just really distant but what was always the case with him was he always in control. Even when everything started to feel scary inside the professor's bag and they found themselves in this wide place with lots of water he remained calm and gestured for her to do the same.

It was also that guy who taught Torchic a trick to stay inside these things when she didn't want to come out. That trick worked wonders for her and she'll have to do it one more time since the bully who stole them away from the professor; a Pokemon she later learned were called Poochyena, came back to try and force them out of their red-white things yet again!

What was with that guy anyway? He called them all sorts of mean things, gnawed on their red-white things and recently noticed it acted funny when it pushed the front button with its nose. Nothing at all like later Poochyena the chick Pokemon would later meet (not just because of all the scars it had all over its body either), well, save for a couple of them…

Oh no! That bully was gonna try and go for the button on her red-white thing again! So persistent; if it were her friend, he'd bust out and show that bully whose boss! But, that's the thing, the only reason it bothered hers so much was because her friend's red-white thing won't act like hers!

Her friend was strong, but Torchic couldn't help but worry! After all, they've been out here for so long and more than anything, she had to focus…!

Refusing the power of the red-white thing is something that required tons of concentration and even more strength to endure all that! She's held out for this long but--

Every bit of reserves Torchic once held slipped away revealing to her the spectrum light can only wield when in the outside world… But she didn't want that!!

She had to hold on! There had to be something left! She--

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**Chapter 1.5- Speed Priority! A Peace Offering Outruns A Pinky-Swear!**

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After agreeing to be a mediator in a troubling case of sibling rivalry, May Hiromi found herself in an even more compromising position when the rumored aggressive Pokemon terrorizing the peaceful citizens of LittleRoot proved to be more than just a rumor.

Though aggressive in action and appearance the troublemaking Pokemon, a lone Poochyena, was a coward by nature when biting off more than it could chew and fled somewhere into Oldale Town as proof of that.

May, not being the biggest fan of those species of Pokemon preferred to leave the situation there and forget it all ever happened. Unfortunately, returning home was out of the question as she had already promised Mrs. Hiromi she'd spend the whole day out exploring LittleRoot in trade for receiving a large meal when she returned. More than three of her favorite dishes and she can have as much as she wants! There's no way she'd back away on a deal like that!!

And so…

"Barking ones are just as bad as monster types when it comes to territory. It'll be back and cause more trouble. Besides, even if I don't wanna do this, and I DON'T, I can't back down even if it is a barking one because I'd be going against a promise! It's not becoming to make a little kid cry, nya."

Became her logic.

"Also! Also…this is my home too, and all I want is live quietly with Mom…"

Morality within self-serving ambitions?

Regardless, what was supposed to be a simple exploration around her new surroundings until a great meal was prepared turned into a wild goose chase around Oldale Town for May as she has done nothing but waste the day away looking for one common in the distant region of Hoenn…

"Hmm~ what a waste of time, why am I even doing this, nya?" May voiced aloud.

Uninterested in the people staring, May surveyed the area from the top of a random streetlight until she dropped back to normal ground and went elsewhere out of boredom. As entertaining as that brief spectacle was, all onlookers felt relief knowing that "criminal misuse of public property" didn't somehow attract the Battery of Justice.

They seriously dodged that bullet…

May, on the other hand, continued her search with very little concern. That was, until her stomach started growling…

"Right, right I'm starving…" she sighed. "I should've at least had a sandwich or something before going outside…" May frowns when her growling stomach agreed. Muttering something about cheating and desperation she rummages through her flappy right shirt sleeve to pull out small purse. "I think I have enough for ice cream or something."

May giggled contently to herself after checking the contents. "Great, I have a lot! Okay, I'm gonna buy something nice, nya!" she squealed. Despite her excitement May hesitated when an unexplainable nagging feeling forced her to study the surroundings around her. "Aah, who cares?" She convinced herself aloud. "It's not even my problem anymore, nya."

With that reasoning, May happily went off to find something to buy.

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(Elsewhere)

After the brief noise of bodily impact the red-white spherical container that held Torchic separated her closeness from her friend when forcefully rolling into a far off patch of grass.

She messed up! She thought she could do it once more but failed in refusing being released from her red-white thing and ended up face to face with that, that…meanie! She never wanted to fight and she never thought of herself better than it, ever!!

She never even met other Pokemon outside her friends! Seriously, what's its problem? Her friend got pretty frantic in his red-white thing because of that but couldn't come out no matter how hard that thing rocked!

The next thing Torchic knew, she found herself quickly turning back to that bully the moment it shouted at her only to feel a lot of pain all over with the ground and sky constantly switching places before everything suddenly became a flash of light and she found herself seeing the ground and sky constantly switching places from her red-white until it finally stopped!

That…that really hurt! It hurts all over and she was really dizzy to boot! What did her friends see fun in doing stuff like that?

She felt a lot weaker because of that but Torchic noticed that her scenery changed, her friend wasn't close by anymore either! This-- Torchic snapped to attention the moment everything suddenly got dark. There's some light coming from the side though…

…She's still hungry…

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(Oldale Town)

She was in pure bliss! May had never eaten anything like this before! A bit messy but she expected no less: Lots of meat, tomatoes and onions rolled up in something called a pita completely covered stuff called white sauce… It was mouth-watering! Was this what her mother meant by the tasty spice of Hoenn?!

She completely forgot why she came all the way out here but who cares, she was really happy and satisfied at this point!

"The meat must've been really lively when it was living." May joked. "Right, so thank you for being gone but really delicious!"

And without a care in the world, May continued to eat her treat.

"_That's not fair!! Why should it matter whose in trouble or if you like them or not, in the end __**all living things have souls **__so everyone is worth helping!!_" The memory of Sally's plea eventually echoed throughout the girl.

"…All living things have souls…Right, that's what I actually came out here for…" May reminded herself. With a solemn expression she stared at her treat before biting into it less ravenously than before. "Delicious." She muttered respectfully.

_"You. What do you think you are doing?" _A voice echoes. _"Transience is not something that can happen to the long ago departed and skewered. Don't be so stupid." _

It seemed to be starting after all. So much for wishful thinking…

Even is she didn't let it show all the time, May hated being called things like "ditz" or "stupid". Sure, she could admit that she wasn't the most attentive or smartest person around but being called those things really took things too far, especially when all she was doing was keeping as much out of her mind as possible to avoid all kinds of weird voices (which she would later was just one very spiteful one) from bothering her.

Thinking back, she never did have to worry about much in Mahogany Town. But one day out of the blue she was given news about her going to live with a mother. A woman Mrs. Terri only mentioned in very little detail once.

She didn't know why but after that, lots of stuff just came to her head all at once, stuff like: "_What was she like?_ _Would I be happy there?_"And, "_Why were we separated? Was it really my fault?_"just hit at her morning, noon and night.

Everyone around her had their say but, all that mattered was frustrating it all was and THAT gave her lots of headaches! Headaches so annoying she'd suddenly space out even when she was awake. Though such a finding wouldn't become unfamiliar to the girl later on, the eerie whispers that would tag along a sudden breeze freaked her out and just got more frequent and louder ever since she arrived to this region.

She searched every inch of her world and aside from that weird (but harmless) free-loader there was--

_"Ufufu~ You know, those words are not all that far off from the truth in some ways." _The voice continued. _"Sorta hits home doesn't hit?"_

"AAH! SHUT-UP! LIKE I'D KNOW! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE ALREADY!!" May, on her feet, shouted at the top of her lungs. Earning her very disturbed looks from bewildered on-lookers as a result. May watched the crowd blankly, immediately sitting back down when the awkwardness couldn't get anymore awkward and her face any redder.

When May hoped to forget her embarrassment and get back into her treat she met nothing but empty hands. When turning her sights further down May jumped onto the bench when noticing a stray Poochyena happily enjoying what was once hers.

"Just how many of you guys are around here anyway, nya?" she whined. As Poochyena didn't respond May, though not leaving her place, gathered her courage to toss the freeloader a shooing gesture.

The attack failed; stray Poochyena, though easygoing by nature, was not willing to give up one of the culinary treats it had its eyes on for quite some time and flashed May a sharp look that made her cringe.

"Forget this!" May replied when she leapt from her place and got away safely. Despite that she continued to race through Oldale at top speed without care of direction or sight while chanting: "All things! All things have souls! But barking one's are just gross!" as she ran.

_"Mantras aren't really the most useful forms of fortification, you know. Especially a mantra that contradicts."_

"Just leave me alo--" May cut herself off the moment her carelessness finally caused her to trip and hit the ground, hard.

The girl's actions were again, the highlight to all those close by at the time. While most questioned whether she was alright or if having two Xs for eyes were normal, others merely wondered where the _hell _the Battery of Justice was off to for all that time? And if that was the case, would she please repeat that for like, from now on?

Though a few of the onlookers went on about their business, those that stuck around were furthered entertained by that oddity of a child when some young child's pet Poochyena walked over and licked her cheek. No matter how convincing that terrified look on her face was the fact she leapt from her current position and nimbly onto the top of a bench earned that young entertainer her well-deserved applaud.

May didn't entirely get what was going on but from her short time spent on this region she noticed the people here always seemed to act up when she did stuff like that. Like she was some kind of action cartoon come to life or something…

She doubted anyone not Pokemon could shoot giant beams of ki or actually pull off killer hand techniques that make bodies explode to millions of pieces but wondered how these people react if she honestly said loads of people can do stuff like her and then some but opted for a sheepish bow instead.

As her final act, May dazzled her audience by somersaulting off the bench and ran at top speed in the direction of Oldale's outskirts.

Well that was fun, the girl thought to herself as she ran farther and farther out of the area. It sucked everybody chose to clap over throwing money, but at least those voices seemed to have went away. She should probably consider going on TV if loads of people really wanted to watch her do simple things and she'd actually get paid for it!

May entertained herself with that idea until she eventually found herself in a small and secluded area grassy area that, when noting the thick sea of trees farther ahead, proved to be the end of the line. However, she quickly realized that scenery flaw compensated itself from the seemingly endless body of water on the right.

"Nya~? Is that the ocean? So there's an ocean around this place too~?" May squealed excitedly. The girl wasted no time in racing over for a better view of one of the world's wonders but had her haste work against her instead when she slipped over some circular item that had her tumbling into the water.

May quickly burst out from the water and crawled back to land with a haggard look on her face. "Just because I like **to see **the ocean doesn't mean I like being **in it!**" she gasped in between breaths. The girl gave an annoyed look when the circular item idly rolled past her. May stopped it from meeting the fate she met though.

"So it was you!" she growled. "Trying to run away?! Let's see how you like being dunked far into the--Nya? Aah! Th-this is…" There was no mistaking it: round, red-white item, pretty on the outside while drowned in the top technology of the era. On of the only vices humanity has over their powerful elemental roommates… "A Poke Ball! It-it's not like I care or anything, I just never saw one up close before…" May takes a closer look at the item before smiling widely. "Aah~ looks like there something inside! How~ intres~ting~!"

Though May was pretty singsong about her find, inside the Poke Ball, Torchic's friend was on guard! Perhaps it was fatigue and hunger that spoke, but in his state he might not be able to properly handle that creature with its sharp dripping fangs! Tch, why hasn't the professor found them yet?

On the creature's err, May's end, she yawned without a care before her stomach reminded her of the situation.

"Right, I'm starving… And now my clothes are soaked so I have to head home no matter what now."

Despite her words, May, with the Poke Ball still in-hand, threw herself onto the grass. She was sorta getting cold but she felt a lot better. Lying back like this without a care in the world, it helped clear the mind and open room for her to drift off to her dreams…

She never attempted a drift while outside before (Mahogany was too cold for that), but the calming breeze that lingered around her felt as if this was how her actions should have always been.

Drifting to a wind-induced heaven, that sounded nice…

May snapped back to reality when the smell of chocolate and other sweets melded itself within her lingering breeze. Pushed on by her growling stomach, the girl groggily moved to all fours and (with the Poke Ball still in-hand) followed the scent. Eventually, May found her pot of gold: Lots and lots of snacks and treats hidden away in a thicker than usual patch of grass. They looked like they've been here for quite sometime and, save for the ones that were torn open or slightly such, they didn't look all that edible, bagged or not…

Well, the fluffy chocolate ones looked squashed but potato chips still have to be good, right?

"Nya? Another one?" May said when noting a new Poke Ball under the bag of chips. The girl stared at the item for a moment before her attention shifted to the still in-hand Poke Ball that thrashed about violently. She watched this for a moment as well before smiling widely. "Interesting, interesting~!!" May said when she picked up the grounded Poke Ball and took a closer look.

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Inside her red-white thing, Torchic shivered uneasily. She tried to save her strength but things felt too off to try to nap. Argh! Ow! Why was her red-white thing shaking like this?! Was this how those sodas the professor enjoyed so much felt when being shaken up? They should be mad; she was at this point too!

W-wait, if someone was big enough (if not mean enough) to actually shake her red-white thing then that meant-- When the shaking actually stopped, Torchic timidly opened her eyes and confirmed correct: A human! But it wasn't the professor or his assistant… Who was this one supposed to be then?

This could be bad…

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"What's with that pitiful face? You're the one in there, dummy!" May remarked. Annoyed, the girl turned to the ball of Torchic's friend and received further offense when he snubbed her. "…You know what?" she began. "These things look really nice and I wanna keep 'em. But I won't be needing the junk inside, so buzz off!"

With a content expression on her face, May held out the two balls to the sky and blinked twice at the realization nothing happened.

Now annoyed (but growingly curious), May brought the two items in for closer inspection. Tch, now she wished she actually paid attention to the tips the very small number of Mahogany resident trainers and even fewer passing through ones were nice enough to tell her…

_::Tch::_…Wait, that sound… Right! There was a button you pressed that made that kind of sound when pressed! There was only one button on those things so--

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**::STANDBY FOR BATTLE PHASE::**

A message that flashed before Torchic's eyes before she was blinded by a bright flash and found herself back in the outside world.

…That never happened before, how she came out of the ball felt different too…It really gave her this weird _jump _when it was all done, her feathers are ruffled! Why'd she do something that?!

In any case she's out, that meant that human-- Whoo, Torchic tended to forget how big humans were… This one seemed pretty content on mashing the button of her friend's red-white thing without a care too… Th-that's pretty mean…

W-wait! B-Battle Phase…? Th-that meant this one was one of those bad humans who hurt other humans and Pokemon like the professor said? It seemed dangerous enough!

Wh-what should she do?! Sh-she hasn't actually battled before like her friends have! B-but if she didn't do anything her friend might--

That bad human, it was no better than that bully Pokemon right now! She was scared, but Torchic gathered her courage and (carefully) stepped forward.

The grass made noise when she moved! So much for a sneak attack!

Torchic froze when that human (if she should even call it one at this point) turned to her sharply with a scary look on its face. Its eyes were glowing and everything too! She's dead!!

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May watched the little creature sternly. She thought Pokemon didn't like being trapped in those things, but that… that little one just stuck around the whole time staring at her with that pathetic look on its face…

It was so…

"What…? What's with you?! Always, always with that pitiful face of yours! It's annoying!" May snapped, forcing the little creature to wince as a response. Not the answer she wanted, no more nice girl. "Look, I don't care if you're some kind of baby, that's not my problem! Go wander around and get some experience points for yourself, nya! …Why are you still staring at me? Go away!!"

That wasn't really fair to say was it? But it just kept…staring and not doing anything else. She wouldn't like it if she was getting talked to like that… She wouldn't run if some **bully **was threatening her while hurting Ms. Terri, Safiya, Gramps or Grams in the process either… It was a Pokemon but it still had feelings and thoughts like she did, right?

Right, she's practically ready to tear this one's head off but wimps out against something that was a natural coward, barking one or not…

Now it became hard to look at the creature knowing what she was… But she wasn't that and she'd prove it…somehow.

"Um…hey…" she began. "Can we have a time out? I…" Hah, that sucked. She NEVER had to apologize in the past so how the hell should she begin? "Look, I don't wanna hurt you or your family, okay? I…I just want your Poke Balls to keep in my collection for pretty and shiny things!"

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Such mean things to say! Such a mean, mean human! Or so Torchic thought, that human just took back what she said all of the sudden.

The professor's assistant once said something about everyone always fighting each other because nobody wanted to see the other halfway.

Maybe, just maybe, it went through a lot like her and her friend…

Huh? It wanted their red-white things? Humans couldn't fit in them could they? Torchic didn't really get where the human was getting at but it seemed to notice that something WAS wrong with her friend's red-white thing!

Torchic watched quietly as the human placed her friend's red-white thing down to reach out to her. She got a bit nervous and closed her eyes out of habit. Lots of weird noise but she **felt **nothing happening! That was a problem since something sweet was in the air and that made her tummy rumble… It was really close too!

Unable to ignore that scent anymore, the chick Pokemon broke her guard and met some kind of treat humans seemed to eat. It was all mushy so she wouldn't have to pick at it much either!

Torchic chirped in excitement at the food in front of her but calmed down enough to face the human a tad confused.

"See? I have hands so I can open these things for you." The human said. "Just let me keep the Poke Balls and have some of the treats and we'll be even. A peace negotiation, nya?"

Peace negotiation? She really didn't get human logic… But there's supposed to be more food around right? Aah! There's **a lot of food around them! **This must be where that bully kept all that human food it stole!

And that horrible guy often ate in front of them too… It might be stolen but: Time to eat!

"So, it's a deal?" Torchic heard the human ask happily but she was happy too! She was crying as she ate because she was so happy! This human was so kind! She was crying because that human's kindness touched her!

Her friend will be freed from its red-white thing, they'd eat lots and then they'd find the professor! Her friend probably knew the way anyway, no wait! That kind human could take them there! That human reminded her of her friend, she bet as she ate that human was--

Torchic watched blankly as that human hungrily at away at two candy bars all while her friend remained in its red-white thing with an annoyed look on its face.

…Th-that one was a _good _human, right?

(A bit later)

With their hands and feathers sticky from eating melted treats, May and Torchic rested in the grass with the Torchic's empty Poke Ball and the Poke Ball containing Torchic's friend in-between them.

"Guess I went a bit overboard on my cut of the treats, nya." May admitted contently. Torchic chirped understandingly. "You ate quite a lot yourself and you're not sick or anything either. You even saved some for your friend, Pokemon are pretty close to humans after all, aren't they, nya?" May grinned. Torchic chirped in response. The chick Pokemon gave a confused look when the girl turned to her with a rather a sneaky smile. "You're pretty plump at this point, I wonder how you'd taste cooked with lots of spices and bread crumbs. My mom is a really good cook."

May gave a wide toothed grin at Torchic's (and her friend's) reaction as she rubbed that all off as a joke. "Don't be such a baby; I couldn't eat ya even if I wanted to." She replied.

Torchic didn't get it, but watched silently as she took her friend's container with her when picking herself up. She was the third human she met after all, one met outside the professor's lab.

She hoped more than anything that they could become friends!

On her end, May pressed the button to the Poke Ball of Torchic's friend a few more times before she tried and failed to forcefully pull it open with brute force. Annoyed, the girl brought the item closer for inspection.

This process required focus but she hated studying! But an item she really wanted would be compromised if she didn't buckle down this one time…!

"…Umm…I remember one of those guys saying something about some secret button or something?" she reasoned aloud eventually. "Where did they say it was again…? Ach! My head-- I hate doing stuff like this, nya!" she whimpered before her expression soured. "Wh-what was that? Now you're making fun of how I talk?! It's just how I talk, okay! Sh-shut-up! I swear when I find you I'm make gonna cry! A-as if I could?! Wh-what'd--"

May snapped to attention and messily returned to her previous engagement when Torchic chirped blankly. While May grew depressed at the fact a Pokemon of all things must've thought of her _that way_, Torchic just stared in confusion.

On his end, Torchic's friend also had his reservations about the matter but shrugged it off and gave into a momentary relaxation before cursed himself for doing so when the sensation of danger ran up its spine. He assured that human girl must've felt similar since she just jumped back and successfully evaded a sneak attack from his and Torchic's battle scarred captor.

He was impressed, very impressed. It would have to be given off to a trainer eventually so why not a partner on his agile standing? But that wasn't important right now, Torchic was still out there! Where'd she-Ah! Looked like she was knocked back quite a bit when that human girl jumped back. As slow and clumsy as ever, tch! Never mind that, she had to stop dawdling and get back in her Poke Ball, now! Wait, no! Her Poke Ball was with the human girl, get back!

…What was she doing?! No! Don't go closer to the human! That's what that poor excuse for a Pokemon wanted!!

Damn, this WAS bad! Torchic wasn't a fighter and he was trapped in his Poke Ball… Looked like the ball was completely in the human's corner. He hoped speed wasn't all she was about…

On her end, May watched the troublemaking Poochyena terrorizing the children (and Pokemon) of LittleRoot nervously. Even its squeaky high-pitched barks made her jump.

The Poochyena didn't act immediately, not when knowing what she did to it last time. It inched in closer every now and then but it spent most of its time growling. May was pretty sure one of those voices would've found that cute and, feeble…

Wait…

"_Everyone knows Poochyena always run away when they get hit even once! But getting bit by one still hurts, my daddy knows that best!_" The memory of Sally's wisdom eventually echoed in May's mind. She didn't want to get bitten, but she knew what had to be done!

Poochyena was taken aback when May suddenly took a determined stance but refused to back down and proved that as it growled far more feverishly than before.

Something that left May and Torchic easily unnerved. "What's wrong it didn't run away?" May panicked. She did NOT want to touch that thing but realized something. "Ummm…I guess…I'd be pretty mad too if the person that made me look really pathetic suddenly broke into my territory." She reasoned innocently. "Sorry about eating all your food by the way."

Poochyena didn't get what May was talking about until its eyes widened at what used to be its stash.

"Yeah, I sorta went over the boundary of what I said I'd eat but I was pretty hungry. Still am, nya." May laughed sheepishly.

May and Torchic flinched when Poochyena barked at them angrily.

Unable to put up with this outrage any further, the scarred bite Pokemon threw caution to the wind and lunged at its targets. Even if she appeared panicky, May was quick to jump away leaving Torchic, equally panicky and lost in the suddenness of it all, to take Poochyena's blow for them both. The chick Pokemon rolled back quite a bit from the attack and was shaken up to boot but her condition wasn't a worry for her attacker and it proved that as it rushed in to ravage its prey.

"Wh-what's it doing? The silly thing's not fighting back at all! That thing really is some kind of baby, isn't it?" May realized. Nature was nature but she didn't want to see that, luckily she remembered the Poke Ball containing Torchic's friend was still in-hand. "Hey, your relative in serious trouble, stop being lazy and pull out those inner superpowers everyone always praising you all for!"

Torchic's friend was outraged. Were all humans outside the lab similar to this?! But she wasn't wrong either, it was his job to keep Torchic safe until she could fend for herself but being stuck in his own Poke Ball of own things, he wasn't any good to her or even to himse--

**::STANDBY FOR BATTLE PHASE::**

Hm? He hasn't seen that message for a while… W-wait! If this message popped up then that meant!

"I don't care if you're pitiful, if there's someone you want to make happy then all those fears will be carried away! So stop it and go help your relative!!" May voiced as she tossed his Poke Ball into the battle zone.

Despite the moral boost, Torchic's friend didn't pop out of his spherical prison and was instead taken for a ride when the item ricocheted off the back of Poochyena's head. Not the kind of attack he intended, but, in combination with the impressive arm and accuracy of his partner, Torchic was safe and that trash Pokemon was stopped in its tracks.

Unfortunately, trash is notorious for its persistence and that trash Pokemon proved no different from how quickly it recovered from the combination attack with only a large lump to show for it.

Looking no worse for wear and annoyed beyond its limits, Poochyena no longer bothered with the severely weakened Torchic or the hit and run Poke Ball that rolled off to the side, no, it only had that human in its sights…

That human… She humiliated it, invaded its home, stole its food and was obviously going to steal its belongings as she did its pride! No more! It was cautious around that furless rag before but if it really wanted to shred it of its existence then it wanted nothing more but to beat her to the shredding!

And because it wanted that more than anything its disposition began to better suit its scarred body when its growling, along with its very expression, became fiercer and more capable of dealing great violence all while its position became that of a readied pounce and its fur bristled up to the point one would think it would fly out and ravage on its own.

"So now I'M the target?!" May flinched. "So much for that Pokemon only likes to fight each other nonsense, nya."

The girl's half-hearted attempt to calm herself only aggravated the scarred bite Pokemon further and it showed its stance by barking so savagely it hopped forward. As much as that unnerved the girl the only option she had was to run and she WAS NOT doing that. No matter how vicious that Poochyena looked, she'd be the humiliated one with all those people watching her run. People stared at her enough in this region and it was already annoying, no need to give them actual ammunition!

Also, she…if she ran she might trip since her vision started to get fogged from watching that thing so much. And, if the wind was trying to force her away from the scene then maybe it shouldn't force itself against her from so many directions at once!

W-wait, these things are happening together? Oh, then it's nothing new to her then. In fact, she was often told by the people of Mahogany that those were the signs of something not from their realm trying to communicate with her. Since dreams and things like Pokemon exist, why not the stuff the people of Mahogany obsess over?

Especially since that was the best guess when the growls of a fiercer, totally different voice rode along the increased push of opposing wind currents. Argh, it made her vision worse!

_"The fear of the beyond accompanies only transience."_

The wind made it hard to keep her eyes open but closing them meant that crazed barking one would have the edge. Err… was she seeing things or was that thing glowing…? So Pokemon have battle auras too? Geez, talk about overcompensation-- No wait, **why **could she see this?!

And better yet, what was "that"?!!

_"The world we tread heralds no home to the fleeting or the immortal."_

Despite everything May heard and now, saw the messenger from the beyond perfectly: She wished it was otherwise, but a large see-through image of what seemed to be the face of a larger, meaner-looking version of Poochyena reflected over its unimpressive true body. A true beast within but now wasn't the time for that, not when THAT was thing trying to talk to her! She had NOTHING she'd ever want to discuss with anything of that caliber!

It could look as upset as it wanted but she hate, hate, HATED barking ones! And there was nothing they'd have in common, so there!

…Or at least, that was what she outwardly tried to convince herself…

_"Refuse no road but accept neither."_

May knew this wasn't the time for reflection but that beast refrained from launching its savage festival of blood, it must've truly wanted to meet her. But why? No matter how important it made itself look she has never met such a creature during her short time with Ms. Terri or with her parents in Mahogany. Or, was that the problem; she always deeply begrudged the barking class of Pokemon but never knew herself.

Or cared honestly, she disliked Pokemon as a whole really, the reason? She just didn't.

You never **needed **a reason to dislike anything; she had her soft spots for "cute" or "appealing" ones! But, as a whole, those things, living dreams…weren't that great was all.

But barking ones…

That had to be it; that beast, everything she felt now played off to the days before she met Ms. Terri--

"You, what did you do to my mom!" May demanded on impulse.

As if offended, the beast responded with a loud roar that pushed the girl backwards until she lost all balance and tumbled into a patch of grass.

---------------------------------------------------------

With the danger shifting elsewhere, Torchic managed to give what she figured her all into standing up again. She felt feint but her friends were in a tight spot: No one deserved to be tortured by that bully and why couldn't that red-white thing let her friend go, it wasn't helping at all!

She wanted to do something, especially for that human. Humans aren't supposed to defeat Pokemon or something like that according to the professor, other Pokemon are supposed to. But…yeah. It-it's not like fighting is something everyone is born knowing! What? Was it wrong to not know how to fight and not see the worth in it either?

Why, those things were life decisions, if that were her two friends-- Torchic snapped to attention when realizing she could do something AND still remained true to something as important as a peace negotiation. As long as the human GOT the red-white things, right? Her beak was pretty hard and the professor often used her to open nuts, they were really tough so only she could do it and that made eating them even better!

Right, so now all Torchic had to do was get to her friend and--Augh… Looked like that _all she had just to stand _really was just that…

D-don't worry everyone, she didn't give up, she was… just really tired.

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"Nyaaaaa~!! So I'M the wrong one?!" May whined. "Darn you! Don't you dare try to confuse me!" It was just a lame knock back move, she could jump back to recovery but, she only moved to her knees. "…I must've been really awesome back then, huh?" May muttered to herself. "Even things from the beyond can't rest until settling old scores…"

It was hard for the girl to swallow, especially since she wasn't the most interested in conflict and went to great lengths to avoid it, even if that meant taking a few dozen insults.

But from the intense pain swallowing her body, all that proved to be just empty attempts weren't they?

_"Forge the road to your heart's inner existence through the jagged path of the central split and finally, allow souls to intertwine."_

No matter how much she tried to curb her evil ways, no matter how much she dulled herself, her past crimes were always going to be there.

Sucked for her, but her current situation did more than reflect whose heart was most coated in sin: The pain Poochyena gave her right hand was indeed cringe worthy, but, all attention focused on the damage her left shoulder received after that beast sunk its fangs and resorted to growling from there. See-through or not, insane pain was insane and even then it stuck to just that over ravaging the hell out of her like she probably did…

…Whatever vile thing she did to this creature that made a kind and thoughtful person like her mom finally be horrified to the point of no return…

"You came all the way from the beyond just to seek revenge in Mom's name. You guys must have been really good friends…" May admitted sadly. "But you know," she continued. "I won't apologize to you, I can say sorry a million times but you'll still be where you are. But you won't go away until you get revenge on me; I'd be the same way if I only had the past."

"So beat me up all you want but you can't kill me, okay?" she compromised. "I sound like I'm begging for my life and maybe I am, I don't want to go to the beyond yet. And I… I just don't want to leave Mom by herself! She already lost us both the first time and even if I doubt I can ever match how good you were to her I want to…" she hesitated but it had to be said! "So that's why I'm telling you to beat me up until you're satisfied! I'm not pitiful, so I'll get by even after losing an arm or a leg!" May snapped but who was she kidding, she **needed **those!

Despite the overall reality of the situation, she pressed for the beast to carry out its vengeance at its noble judgment.

_"We await the awakening of your heart until then."_

The translucent beast heard May's plea but they were just garbled human sounds. She said it can eat her though, right? Good, too many small fries, it's about time its physical portal started to become true to its species and hunt meals that could fill the stomach **and **the _**soul!**_

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Torchic froze with fear; after she wasted everything she had getting up she tumbled over and remained like that since. She tried to move but it felt like she wasted more strength just doing that, now it looked like another Pokemon of that bully's species was in the area now! Just how much of those guys existed anyway?

It didn't appear interested in her though, just lapped up some water from the giant body of it, turned to her while licking the corners of its mouth and slinked back to the tall grass. It didn't need to look so angry about it, but that could just be a species thing, Torchic felt relieved regardless though. However she was forced to snap to attention quicker than she'd ever want the moment she heard the bully whimpered.

The same jerk that scared her just now fought wildly with that bully! Man that guy was fast and moreover, it was horrifying! But it sorta saved that human so maybe it was on their side…She shouldn't allow current situations to make her stupid. Maybe she'd get lucky and they'd take each other out.

After all, that whole subspecies of Pokemon proved to be nothing but a spreading nuisance.

Fighting like that, what would that bring…?

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What was supposed to be a dining of something new turned into frustration for the beast. Had it actually bothered to notice its portal to reality's tenderness long ago abandoned its prey to fight with another Poochyena that would have explained why no matter how much ferocity and vigor it put into its ravaging damages on its prey were just torn clothing and skin deep wounds shoulders up. Now it was reduced to threatening growls since it could no longer sink its fangs into its prey!

On her end, May was too numbed to worry about injuries or her surroundings but shared the beast's common ground as **it **was the only thing she kept in sight. What's its problem, she wondered. It hardly looked satisfied so was its stopping a matter of pride or, something else?

Either way it should stop being so petty. She may have started this mess but she wasn't some demon lord spawn anymore. She just wanted to get this mess over with, lick her wounds, go home with her precious new items in hand and enjoy the meals only her mom knew she loved with her!

It will be sometime before the ideals of always moving forward toward the new sun will be revealed to her, but right now, nothing was going to stop her from living as she pleased!

As it took her determined stares as a challenge the beast refused its situation and made a failed attempt to sink its fangs into May before dissipating from the mortal realm.

May didn't notice this immediately, she never noticed until the realization she wasn't being attacked after what little she remembered of her life rolled by for the fifth or so time was when she finally crumbled into teary relief. That didn't last long though, not when shaky nerves amplifying the voices of battling Poochyena forced the once fallen in relief to spring to her feet.

Of course her sudden "there's more than one voice?!" realization was answered through her course of actions and she was just glad she wasn't in the middle of it. Oh, so that little one was still alive and right in the middle of the war zone too, nobody deserved that. Ah and the Poke Ball with her relative-

…Well, THAT was a problem…

-------------------------------------------------------

Those creatures, they really were a spreading nuisance, Torchic shuddered.

And a spreading nuisance they proved to be as their reckless fight resulted in her friend's red-white thing to be knocked into the water when that bully wrestled down its opponent and followed-up with a Tackle. Of course, _that one _jumped out of the water in retaliation but the same couldn't be said for her friend!

This was bad, bad, bad! But she put everything she had into just getting up before and water and her oddly didn't mix so any efforts (if she could have actually done them) on her part would be a waste.

That's why it's all bad, bad, because nothing of this situation was a waste: Her closest friend needed her help for a change and she was utterly useless from the get go!

…If-if she fought like her friends and that bully did would she be able to endure more like them too? Was stuff like that really the only way to get things done outside the lab…? Sh-she…

"No, no no! You think after all that nonsense I'm not leaving here without my prize? Stop joking around!!" May voiced.

Torchic held back her tears and watched in surprise as May frantically shuffled her arms about the water. She said some other things too; many she was pretty sure the professor said weren't nice things to say. But the thing Torchic noticed most was just how messed up she was after that bully attacked her and she still (somehow) managed to come all the way over from where she was with enough energy for them both times maybe a million!

Humans were supposed to be weaker than Pokemon but really, it didn't seem that way between the two of them…

That human was entering the water now to find her friend, okay that did it, Torchic resolved. Even someone like her had some pride and it would really hurt her friend if she kept holding him back. She had to try!!

However, the chick Pokemon's efforts ended before they began when that bully crashed right into her. Like its rival before it, there was quick recovery after a strong blow; Torchic of course, couldn't say the same. Despite that, the chick Pokemon didn't need to be standing to see why that bully hasn't moved an inch, if anything, she was probably better off in the position she was currently in…

Being even a tiny bit like _them _was apparently out of her grasp after all…

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"No, no, no! You think after all that nonsense I'm not leaving here without my prize? Stop joking around!!" May snapped as she frantically shuffled her arm about the water. Nothing. The girl frowned but took a deep breath before she dunked her head into the water, still nothing but the ground looked pretty close.

Urgh, so it came to THAT…

As much as May enjoyed staring at the ocean and loved taking baths, at the end of the day, she just wasn't any good IN the water! Her mobility and everything was cut, she could hardly see and couldn't even breathe. It was just horrible, what human could enjoy being in that death trap?!

But that didn't matter, none of the negatives did! She already put up with a lot today, and as far as May was concerned claiming all prizes offered always overcame the negatives she'd have to endure to get them! And with that truth she gained motivation as she snuck past the battling Poochyena to be where she currently was!

With nothing but her ambition keeping her strong, May removed her sandals before entering the water. She was already soaked from earlier so how cold she felt was nothing, the water being over her waist was… She could still walk around, it's not like her prize could've gotten very far anyway!

Despite her confidence, _a while _was the best way to describe how long the girl aimlessly searched and searched. She might have gained points for stubbornness but her tumble and moreover, her not reemerging topside since then ranked negatively on other scales…

After an extended period of time, May, motionless and eyes swiveled, resurfaced on the back of some spherical blue Pokemon. Given the precision and delicate output of power used into launching the girl back to land via the blowholes on its back hinted a possible history that burdened this creature more than once before.

However, that was a tale best told for another time…

Her lower right leg swollen from something stinging her in the water, her body shaken with numbing pain and general horrid feelings all around, it were moments like these May wished she wasn't so light framed.

That thought was put aside though, she wasn't really the most motivated to **do **much of anything right now…

It wasn't because of her injuries, she could probably get to her feet if she really willed it, it was just by doing that she'd just go back into--

"Today was supposed to be a super rewarding day today and then I run into you guys." May voiced upon a little one's gentle approach.

It was nothing serious but she was glad it couldn't see her face and hoped to keep it as such. Despite that, as odd as it was for her as well, May felt she owed it something…

"I…I really wanted that for item myself but with you around I wanna say: I tried my hardest but I'm no good in the water. You're relative's not with me, so deal's off. But," she continued, "I know I could've done more somehow so I'm really annoyed with myself right now…"

Not exactly what she wanted to say. _This _proved a more tad difficult than many made it out to be…

But she couldn't let it end here! That's why…that's why May sucked in the welling uneasiness and said: "Your relative might not be here but you're okay! Y-you're a baby but you're still a Pokemon, nya? It'll be tricky for you at first, but you should be fine in an easy area like this, it-it's really easy!" May hesitated. "Just…just be really careful of abnormal guys and things from the beyond, those guys are the worst!"

Urgh, that wasn't what she wanted to say either! This was way too hard, trying to be apologetic that is! It all just made her feel worse!

"Um, can you just leave me alone now?" May asked. "I-I just wanna stay like this for a while…" May's request was heard but gained no follow-through as the little one's presence continued to impose on her personal space. "…Just because I'm in a pitiful mood doesn't mean I want you around me. You'd understand me better if you were a human." The little one's presence lingered. "Leave." The language barrier between humans and Pokemon was at overdrive, apparently.

And May's unwillingness to get on her feet? Well, what bothered her earlier no longer appeared to be a factor as she clenched the grass under her hands.

"You don't get it do you…? You think because I WANT to be like this we're suddenly similar? Don't demote me so simply!" she growled in indignation as she struggled against her pitiful position. "Seriously, you're like that but you're so cocky… So insensitive! But there's a huge difference between you and me: I… _**I!!!**_"

Maybe it was just in her nature to never want to lose, but May's fears, her feelings for atonement and worry for the future…let that all be carried away into the wind for now. "I'M NOT SOME SUPER PITIFUL WEAKLING! I-I'M STRONG! A LOT STRONGER THAN YOU'LL EVER BE!! So… SO STOP THINKING WE'RE SOME KIND OF EQUALS!!!" May, now proudly on her knees, roared at the top of her lungs.

Her outburst winded her some but her point was sent across.

May remained oblivious to the lingering howls of wind and the fluttering blades of grass to look down on the only thing that currently mattered: That stubborn little creature; the catalyst for today's ruination, that selfish little pest, that super pitiful little--

"…Nya? The little one is a small one?" May voiced when the one who hovered around her that whole time was not Torchic but a random wild Poochyena, one a lot tinier than the ones she's met thus far.

Another infant, May figured. It would grow up to be another unruly pest like the rest of its particular species but maybe, May thought for a moment, if she took it in and made it her prototype it could then set out into the world, spreading a message of proper behavior among all barking ones!

Project DELICIOUS she'd call it!

She scrapped that idea though, who'd wanna waste all their precious time doing all that? The process sounded way too costly as well, total waste of resources better wasted on herself.

Still, those Poochyena were the bringers of the ruination of what was supposed to be a super rewarding day and she could never get that back! Someone should pay, why not the ones who screwed her over?

"…But this small one had nothing to do with that." May sighed eventually.

The tiny Poochyena cocked its head to the side after May, with a tightened expression, patted its head before she hastily picked herself up to leave.

_"…I always knew you were stupid but honestly, are you __**that **__stupid?" _A voice hissed along a light breeze. _"Your only key moment to send a message across to your mortal enemies and you NOW decide to adhere to superfluous human behavior? No matter, I sensed __**it**__, you know…"_ it teased.

"The point of today was to go out for a while, right?" May voiced quickly. "The sun is setting and…I'm going home as promised! So, time to head home!"

She held an uneasy expression about it, but let it all be blown aside. She had someone who awaited her return.

_"It must have been very hard to refrain from striking that beast down, wasn't it, dear? Each pat you made was a bit stronger than the next."_

May froze in her tracks.

_"Ufufu~ You don't have to say it,"_ the voice continues._ "The atmosphere here is giving me goosebumps as well… These delicious feelings replenishing your heart: You're instincts, your frustration for not carrying out rightful revenge, your understanding of what you are in this world of forsaken children… __**It's all such alluring chargers for bloodlust, isn't it?**__"_

If it had lips that voice would have most certainly licked them by now. Likewise, if it possessed any kind of form it would've have blinked blankly when it then voiced: _"Oh, how stupid of you, you got so lost in your heart's delicious angst that you walked right in the center of your mortal enemies feeding frenzy."_ When May found herself in the middle of a large pack of Poochyena of varying sizes. A pack that tiny Poochyena affiliated itself with as it pushed through the crowd with little concern. _"I suppose this was all too much too soon. You don't seem to be the wisest when it comes to just how and when to get things done."_ The voice mused. _"Don't be overzealous now."_

The spiteful voice might have left laughing but it was long ago ignored.

In her blinded attempt to blot out the day's ruination May DID walk in on the pack of Poochyena but the respective group of bite Pokemon appeared too preoccupied to give _another human _their time of day. May couldn't be bothered with them herself, not when Torchic, the one that originally held their attention, was being left to rot while some other helpless unknown received the same undeserving treatment.

The little one wasn't dead but how beat up it was froze May right in her tracks.

That taunting voice who would reveal itself in good time might have left laughing along a lonely breeze but the powerful cry of the beast from the beyond was the one to reach out to May. She should've been satisfied at the sight: That beast far more translucent than usual (most likely a projection from the beyond) hovering over head and being torn at from every possible direction.

She only came out this far to punish some troublemaker, right? Well, that pack of Poochyena seemed content with whatever they ravaged and slowly started to head back to whatever den they called their home which left their victim, or whatever was left of the former terror of LittleRoot to rot for whatever reason they had and she didn't even have to lift a finger.

Savage victories of that caliber were a lot harder to obtain than tracking down any shiny Pokemon!

Vengeance served and mission complete. So, why did she look away with such a guilty look?

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(…)

They were weak but Torchic chirped in confusion when she came to. Her vision was a bit blurry but, was she in a hole? Maybe those stupid jerks made a hole in the ground using her body. It sure felt that way, she really couldn't move this time…

Torchic struggled to chirp in protest when dirt began to be thrown on her. If she somehow survived all this she'd never go out again!

"Nn-- That voice?"

Her voice too! Torchic would've loved to bounce for joy when May appeared over her with that look of surprise and relief(?) on her face but this was fine!

"S-so, you're still alive, nya? Ah, I mean--" May grinned sheepishly. Due to the human-to-Pokemon language barrier May's eyes slowly shifted to the side as she said: "Nyaha. Y-you're not in a hole or anything. I-it wasn't like I was burying you or anything!" she snapped. "I… Everyone should have a nice bed as they sleep, nya?" she said but muttered: "But I really thought for a second you weren't waking up…"

Despite heavy injury, Torchic's expression darkened. That human's face was of shock but NOT relief. Th-This one WAS a good human in the end, right…? Right?!

No. Torchic wanted to believe in that human. After all, they both used the mysterious power of a peace offering and survived their respective nightmares. And since she was pretty sure her current position was to blame, her friend must be safe (trapped in his red-white thing but still safe) and most likely by that human's side.

That human, though really super-duper weird, was indeed a trustworthy friend.

However, due to the human-to-Pokemon language barrier Torchic's chirps of gratitude only bothered May.

She didn't like being mocked, especially by the cry of some pitiful little one who marketed off misfortune.

It probably expected her to heal it or something; starting some Pokemon based adventure after nursing it back to health? An exotic pet for her to play with? Not for her! She had her fill of what the outside world for a very long while.

That needy little-- She won't have any of that! And with that as her resolve the girl brought herself to her feet and loomed over the confused Torchic coldly.

"…You really have no type of instinct at all…" May voiced. "Even the smallest of humans have **that!** Even if they got hurt outnumbered like you, they'd get hurt trying to **run!** So what's **your** excuse? You're a Pokemon aren't you? Those two were!" she snapped. "That one went down facing the same amount of barking ones you did! And, and that relative was trapped in its Poke Ball the whole time but always wanted to give its all for your sake but you're still here and that one is--They're going to the beyond while you…!!"

As if an act of the subconscious, May bit the bottom of her lip. She was silenced but stared long and hard at the catalyst of her day's ruination who, for her own reasons, weakly stared back at the catalyst that cost her pretty much everything.

Not that Torchic herself was aware or in the condition to ever consider such a thing. The same can't be said in May's angle; she knew and couldn't fight that truth…

**A favorable compromise between those that are already close is the strength that holds a promise together. You cannot make promises to a stranger…**

She held regret on her face but May still bent down and wrapped the exhausted chick Pokemon into her arms.

"…You're too small to be good for anyone… A little one like you." She said to the resting Torchic.

**Yet, through the finding of a middle-ground; the understanding and feelings, no matter the levels of unfamiliarity or scorn in heart, a bond that can transcend even the most intertwined of hearts will form.**

**The peace offering's power knows no bounds.**

"Hn? Stop with all knocking the door is open you know." Mrs. Birch voiced.

She didn't get many visitors and all that was family knew the ritual of entering the home so judging by the familiarity of the face she'd say her turn finally came. Now whatever that said turn entailed was something only Mrs. Birch knew but, she held little interest in said role as she disregarded the obvious atmosphere and gave her visitors an annoyed glare muttering: "Tch, are you trying to break down my door? I don't think someone like you can afford to repair that."

May blinked twice at that comment. The door was open; it was all the things her Gramps and Grams taught her about entering others' home that stopped her from barging in. Heck, there was even a sign that said: "Do you think this is some RPG? Knock first!".

Like she'd pay for anything!

No, now wasn't the time for that. May gave the disagreeable character a pleading look as her hold on Torchic tightened.

"S-I'm sorry! But you're Professor Birch?" May responded in rushed breaths. "Everyone said…Go to Professor Birch to help this little one! There was a sign that said so! I'll…do what you say! Very sorry, just please help this little one so I go!"

Mrs. Birch blinked twice at that horrid use of international tongue but what soured her mood was what little she picked up of it.

"Dammit Brendan!" she growled before she smacked her forehead and calmed down. "Well, things have suddenly taken an interesting development." The woman sighed before outstretching her left arm May's way. "What's with that look? You said you'd do anything if I said I was Prof. Birch, right? In the real world adults like compensation for doing something bothersome. And I'm in luck," she grins, "the supply for my favorite crackers ran low and I finally know how I'll get them before my next soap starts."

**Though it is a bond that will not be reached this too is a peace offering!**

**Chapter 1.5 End**

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That's right; May didn't even know her but went out of her way to help her and her friend. She's always been such an odd human. But of all the humans Torchic knew before her and would meet after their meeting, she's still her most cherished and the one she owes the most to!

It's because May never gave her any special treatment and taught her a bit more about herself as a Pokemon is why she's able to stand like this right now. But, no matter how weird she is, May is still a human and a kind unstable one at that. Torchic is going to need to do everything in her power to help ease her burden.

But before she can do that, she needs to head back to the professor's lab. She knows her most cherished Pokemon friend is there! May saved them both but had to take her in because her injuries were the worst between them! She's better and a bit stronger now, she needs to face him and apologize for always burdening him with her weakness! It won't be easy but…she, she has to try!

She'll promise before him, no, before him AND May, that she'll grow stronger and stronger so that one day **she **can be the one doing the protecting for them both!

They won't admit to it and would definitely laugh as their little one tries to act tough. But, but she won't be like this forever and today proves that much!

And now, with victory on her side, Torchic watches from a safe distance as the foam eats away at the vehicle and the mutated spikes Pokemon's body while a spreading puddle does the same to the ground beneath them.

Though knowing she should go for safety's sake, Torchic just can't help but watch what's left of that monstrosity with mixed feelings…

Its agonizing cries are something to feel bad about, but when it starts crying out about power…

Well, she just can't feel sorry for it anymore!

Someone as powerful as this one crying for more power?! And…just so it can _cast judgment on all vile humans_…? It…it really has some nerve! Humans, Pokemon, where everyone lives, none of that matters! Everyone is capable of doing good and bad whoever they are!!

If anything, jerks like it are the reason why no one can truly be happy! Guys like that… They can do so much already but squander everything on showing off and beating on those weaker!!

Really, what is "power" to those who already have too much of that?

If she had power…

…She can't even look at this thing! It deserves to be where it is now; individuals like that truly are full of nothing!

_"You… don't sound the most convinced, little one…" _A voice echoes to the dismay of Torchic's weak nerves.

_"Ahh…Even if it's like this, I'm…I'm glad to finally be given…the opportunity…to speak with you properly… The…the little one who--" _

**To be continued **

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(Notes)

About fourteen months since I last posted a new chapter…

I'm very sorry about that. It's been a pretty hectic period for me and when I actually did have time to sit and write I was either contending with major scene and timing/character direction conflicts or just couldn't be bothered with writing altogether.

But well, it's not the ending of the first arc like I'm sure I boasted about previous chapters back but, here we are. I hope future releases won't be an issue but well, thank you for remaining patient with me and enjoy.


End file.
